Harry and Ginny: After the Battle of Hogwarts
by I am iron man 14
Summary: Set after the Battle of Hogwarts in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, I give you my version of events. We see what happens to Harry, and Ginny. Just what will Harry do now that Voldemort has been defeated? Read on and find out... A/N: I hope you enjoy the fic, and leave a long review. If you think the fic should be added to a community, please CONTACT ME FIRST.
1. Chapter 1 After the Battle of Hogwarts

Heyy! I've decided to write a Harry/Ginny fic, and I'm really excited about it! So check it out, and give it a review!

Harry Potter stood alone atop the Astronomy Tower. Everyone in the castle was celebrating the victory over Voldemort and the Death Eaters, it was great for a while, but Harry couldn't escape the deaths of his friends. Remus, his last connection to his father, Harry had loved him almost as much as he loved Sirius. Now he was dead, along with his wife, Tonks. Harry would never forget the look on Remus's face when he burst into Shell Cottage to deliver the news about his son being born. Now that boy would grow up without his parents. Harry knew all too well the troubles of growing up without your parents.

Fred. How could Harry ever face the Weasley's? He knew they would never blame him for Fred's death, but that wouldn't stop Harry blaming himself. He knew what losing family was like, but losing Fred would be different. The Weasley's were the closest family Harry had ever seen. He couldn't begin to imagine the effect this would have on them. What would he say to Ron? Or Ginny? He cried silently, he couldn't face Ginny. He didn't know how to act around her, he wanted nothing more than to scoop her up in his arms and kiss her, but he couldn't, she had just lost her brother.

Harry thought about many of the people who had died in the battle, but he thought mostly, of Professor Snape. Harry kept reliving what he had seen in the pensieve, Snape had sacrificed so much for Harry. He had a chance at a life of his own, but Snape had not stopped loving Harry's mother. Snape had risked everything, and eventually Voldemort had killed him. Harry knew eventually he would have to face everyone, he was going to make sure the first thing he did was make sure people knew that Snape was the true hero. He had worked behind the scenes, and saved everyone. If it wasn't for Snape, Harry wouldn't have been able to defeat Voldemort.

Harry turned his head when he heard a noise behind him. "Harry Potter." A soft voice said behind him. Firenze, the centaur, stepped into view. "I see you've come to reflect on past events, an idea we both share." Harry felt comfort in Firenze's words, and decided to confide in him.

"So many people have died today, I just, how do I face everyone?"

"Its hard to lose the people we hold dear," Firenze said, his voice a soothing tone, "but we must move forward with our lives, the pain won't ever go away Harry, but your heart will prevail. To recover from a loss, is to strengthen your soul."

"Thank you," Harry replied sincerely, "I think I'm ready to go downstairs."

"A bit of reassurance always helps." Firenze smiled, "They will all look up to you Harry, but I know you will find the right words to say."

Harry composed himself, and turned towards the door. He had a fleeting thought, that if he was allowed to return to school to re-take his 7th year, he might take divination if Firenze was teaching.

OoOoOoO

"If I could have everyone's attention for just a moment," Harry announced standing atop a large mound of rubble in the Great Hall. He was trying to mimic Dumbledore's style, catching each persons eye individually, captivating his audience, but remaining humble. "I eh, was going to give a short speech, but first I'd like to ask you all to take a moment of silence, to respect our friends who lost their lives to ensure a better future for the rest of the world." The hall fell silent, Harry took time think of his next words. After what he thought was about a minute, Harry spoke again.

"I am sure that today, everyone is feeling conflicting emotions. Yes, we are sad. We have all lost friends in this war, family, children even. We must, and will, take time to grieve our losses." Harry's eyes glanced fleetingly at the Weasley family. "We must also rejoice though," Harry raised his voice, trying to make himself sound provocative. "We have won this war! In doing so we have ensured the world has a better future, not just for us, but for generations to come. Of course we will look back and remember the hard times we went through, but that will only spur us on to make sure we live the best life we possibly can!" A cheer had broken out across the hall, Harry broke into a smile. "I'd like to take a moment to tell you all about a man who all but won the war for us. He is the true hero in all of this, and the bravest man I have, and will ever know." A gasp echoed around the hall as Harry announced; "Severus Snape devoted his life to defeating Voldemort. He is the reason we are all standing here, and is truly one of the greatest, bravest men ever to walk the earth." Another gasp, and a few horrible remarks.

"I know how hard this has been, on everyone. I want to thank everyone who fought for us. The Wizards and Witches, Goblins, Animals." Harry choked back tears as he thought of Hedwig, his longest friend. She had sacrificed her own life to save Harry, a debt he felt he would never repay. "The entire magical world came together to defeat Voldemort, We've been assisted by Dragons! Giants! That damn Sorting Hat!" Another cheer broke out across the hall, Harry was sure he actually saw the hat, and it was chuckling.

"Even the House Elves played a huge part in winning the war." Harry couldn't hold the tears back this time. He could see Ron and Hermione comforting each other, no doubt remembering Dobby coming to their rescue. "Among many people I have to thank for helping me, I am most indebted, to one of my best friends. His name was Dobby, a free elf." With that Harry ended his speech, leaving the Hall without another word to anyone.

With some difficulty, Harry navigated his way through the debris, to the Gryffindor common room. In comparison to the rest of the castle, it seem relatively undamaged. The odd chair was tipped over, but Harry sorted that out with a flick of his wand. He sank into an armchair, and flicked his wand again to set the fire roaring. He sat, lost in his thoughts. A particular red-headed girl occupied most of them. What was he going to say to Ginny? Maybe after all that had happened, she wouldn't want to be with him. What if she never wanted to see him again? Harry didn't think he could live with it.

OoOoOoO

"Harry!" He woke with a start, not realising he had fallen asleep. "Why haven't you spoken to me at all? You know when you defeated Voldemort, or before you went and got yourself killed!"

"I, I eh-" No words came as stared into the furious eyes of Ginny Weasley. He had wanted to speak to her, honestly he wanted to do more than speak to her. But he couldn't face her, he didn't know what to say. "Ginny I-"

"God Harry," she cut him off, "please don't tell me your sorry. Enough people have told me that today, what happened to Fred was not your fault. So you can stop avoiding me, sweep me off my feet, and carry me off into the sunset on a unicorn! Or whatever it was you were planning to do."

Again, words did not form on Harry's lips, so he pressed them against Ginny's instead. Gladly, she didn't seem to mind.

OoOoOoOoO

Harry spent the next three weeks at the Burrow. Mrs. Weasley would not allow him to be taken anywhere else, and Harry was glad of it. The Weasley's were as friendly as they always had been, and Mrs. Weasley stated that the Burrow was his new home and he need never leave. He was leaving soon however, all of the major repairs had been done to Hogwarts. Professor McGonagall had agreed to let him re-take his 7th year. School would be starting very early this year. No reason was given in his letter, it just said; 'due to important events, the school term will start June 30th.' Harry wasn't sure why, it was probably so students could catch up on work they had missed or something.

He was incredibly pleased, he would finally get a normal year at school, no Voldemort, or Death Eaters, or TriWizard Cups. No Azkaban escapees who then turn out to be your godfather. The Chamber of Secrets would remain closed. The Dementors wouldn't show up. He might even get to play Quidditch, he had a decent chance of making the team he thought. His girlfriend had been named captain of the Gryffindor team.

Harry had taken quite a few trips to Diagon Alley. He replaced his trunk, and bought a new Firebolt. Despite protests from the entire Weasley family, Ginny was surprised with a Firebolt as well. The only thing that made him slightly sad was that Ron and Hermione wouldn't be joining him. They were going to Australia to find Hermione's parents. All of the students in 7th year under Professor Snape were offered the chance to re-take their 7th year at Hogwarts. Neville would be there, though Harry doubted he would see Seamus, or Dean. It didn't matter, Harry was already planning the long walks around the lake he would be taking with Ginny.

"Hey day dreamer!" Harry looked round to see Ginny, two Firebolts slung across her shoulders, "you better get in some practice if you don't want me replacing you as Seeker." A menacing grin spread across her face.

"No chance," Harry replied, "I'm a little out of practice I'll admit, but I'm still the best Seeker around!"


	2. Chapter 2 The Hogwarts Express

Heyy guys! Here is chapter two. I hope you all enjoy it so, read and review! Thank you for all the kind comments I've recieved!

The day had finally arrived. Harry stood on platform 9 3/4 gazing in awe at the gleaming scarlet engine in front of him. Despite all of the fighting, the Hogwarts Express remained untouched. It stood waiting just as it always had, ready for the wave of students returning to Hogwarts. "We could just stare at it all day if you like," Ginny appeared at his side, "but I'd much rather be on it." Harry wrapped an arm around her waist and lead her onto the Gryffindor carriage.

"Do you think it'll be different this year?" Harry asked.

"Hogwarts?" Ginny asked. Harry nodded. "I don't think the castle will have changed much, but it might not be as busy, and of course we will have new teachers as well."

Harry nodded solemnly. He couldn't imagine Hogwarts without Dumbledore there. Dumbledore had devoted his life to Hogwarts, and its students. Suddenly Harry wasn't looking forward to school as much. Harry heard the train blow its whistle and watched Kings Cross Station roll out of view. "It won't be the same without him there." Harry said.

Ginny knew who he was talking about. "It isn't. Dumbledore made the place light up with joy. McGonagall has incredibly big shoes to fill." Harry felt Ginny hand give his knee a squeeze. "We have each other Harry. No Voldemort, no danger, just school, and Quidditch. I still passed a few N.E.W.T.S last year, so 7th year won't be hard." She was right. 7th year was almost a formality. He had plenty free periods, all of which he intended to spend with Ginny.

Harry watched out the window as the countryside in Scotland rolled by. At some point in the journey Ginny had ended up in his lap, now they were stretched out snoozing in their compartment. A shout of "anything from the trolley!?" Snapped Harry out of his slumber. He was up on his feet, wand drawn and pointed at the door, leaving a dazed Ginny picking herself up off the floor of the compartment.

"Christ Harry!" Ginny exclaimed sourly, "a little warning wouldn't go amiss."

"Sorry," Harry said weakly, lowering his wand, "reflexes." Ginny didn't look pleased but she sat without comment. Harry beamed as the old lady who had pushed the trolley since his first year stuck her head into the compartment.  
"Harry Potter," the woman smiled, "I heard rumours you were returning this year."

"Well," Harry replied, "here I am."

She addressed both of them, "I still remember the day a shy 11 year old boy stepped aboard this train. I should too, I made quite a profit that day." Another smile appeared on her face. "Now look at you! You've grown into a fine young man Harry, and you saved us all."

It was Harry's turn to grin as he held out a large handful of Galleons. "We'll take the lot."

"A different Weasley this time," a wicked smile crossed the old woman's face, and she raised an eyebrow. "I'll just leave the trolley here." She left without another word.

OoOoOoOoO

"You just bought the entire trolley!" Ginny exclaimed.

"For old times sake," Harry replied casually, peeling the wrapping off a chocolate frog.

"You mean you've done it before?" Ginny's jaw dropped.

"How do you think I became friends with Ron?" Harry asked.

Ginny seemed to contemplate this for a moment, before adding, "I understand now. Anyone who can buy a trolley full of sweets would be Ron's best friend for life." There was a moment of silence, then they both burst into peels of laughter.

Harry flopped down next to Ginny and rested his head on her shoulder. He could have stayed there forever, unfortunately they did need to change into their robes. Which unfortunately meant Harry had to leave the compartment for a few minutes. He arrived back at Ginny's side just as darkness started falling. He was longing for a glimpse of the castle. "So," Harry announced, "know any good broom cupboards?" The comment earned him an elbow in the ribs.

"As far as I can see Harry," Ginny whispered into his ear, "We have the compartment all to ourselves." She placed her hand lightly on his chest, and brought her lips up to meet his.

OoOoOoOoO

"Firs years over 'ere!" Hagrid's voice boomed across Hogsmeade Station. "Come on now lets not hang about!"

"Hagrid!" Harry yelled forcing his way through the crowd.

"Harry!" Hagrid exclaimed with delight, "what are you doing 'ere?"

"They let me re-take my 7th year," Harry explained, "I didn't have any other plans, and I really miss the place." He was lying, he had thought up several plans, all of them involving Ginny, and usually a warm beach in the Caribbean. But Hogwarts seemed the best idea. "No Skrewts this year I hope?"

"You mean-"

"Yep," Harry cut the giant off, "see you in class professor." They gave one another a hug and went their separate ways. Harry reappeared at Ginny's side with two broomsticks over his shoulder, they were just entering the gates.

"Harry what are you-"

"Wanna do something crazy and probably against the rules?" Harry asked handing Ginny her Firebolt.

Ginny thought for a moment. "Sure. why not?" They kicked off the ground and soared into the air, amidst angry protests from Filch. "Race you to the Astronomy Tower Potter!"

"You're on!" Harry replied. They completed a few laps of the castle before landing in the courtyard. They hurriedly stored their Firebolt's in a broom cupboard, and Harry made a note of its location should he decide that he and Ginny might need some time alone. They arrived late into the hall, drawing suspicious glances from all four tables. Harry greeted Neville and took a seat beside him, Neville smirked but made no comment. Everyone could make up their own version of what Harry and Ginny had gotten up to. Ginny slipped her hand into his as the sorting began.


	3. Chapter 3 The Stadium

Heyy! Here is chapter 3! I hope you enjoy it, I have a big revelation soon! Read and review!

Iron Man.

Harry and Ginny were surprised to find the Common Room very empty. There hadn't been many first years in the Great Hall, and there seemed to be many students absent. Harry knew that some of them had been killed, and seeing the common room so empty really made it hit home. But Harry also suspected that a lot of students weren't returning, because they or their parents thought the school was unsafe. The thought made Harry sad, Voldemort was gone, Hogwarts was the safest place for children again. The castle was repaired, the protective enchantments had been renewed.

As if sensing his mood, Ginny flopped down onto his lap and rested her head on his chest. "It'll be all right Harry," she sighed, "it'll be all right." He held her close, and soon succumbed to the heat of the fire. It was a long while later when Ginny woke him. "Wouldn't you be more comfortable in bed?" She asked.

"Probably not." Harry replied with a smirk. But he could see the clock telling him it was midnight. "All right, night Ginny." He rose from his seat and gave her a quick kiss before ascending the stairs to the boy's dormitory.

OoOoOoOoO

Harry woke the next morning, it felt strange not having Ron in the bed next to his. It was now occupied by a fifth year, who Harry found irritable. He showered and dressed quickly, before heading down to the Common Room. The room was empty, so Harry read over his class schedule and waited for Ginny. Around half an hour later Harry and Ginny were walking arm in arm towards the Great Hall, when they were interrupted by Peeves the Poltergeist.

"Ooo Potter has a new girlfriend!" Peeves laughed, though Harry wasn't sure what he found funny.

"Yeah, are you the last to find out?" Harry asked, annoyed by the poltergeist.

"The last?" Peeves said, shocked.

"Unlike you Peeves," Ginny put in, "you used to be the first to find out these things, you must be getting old." Peeves looked furious, and left in a rage. Harry and Ginny burst into laughter. "The look on his face!" Ginny laughed. Harry nodded his agreement.

OoOoOoOoO

The pair entered the Great Hall and filled their plates. "Classes this morning?" Harry asked.

"Transfiguration, then a free period, then double DADA." Ginny replied looking over her class schedule.

"We'll be in DADA together, it should be our top subject," Harry said, "I wonder who our new teacher will be." There had been no announcement at the feast last night, and no new faces at the teachers table.

"Mmm," Ginny thought about it, "I wonder if McGonagall will still take Transfiguration. She is the expert, but she's the Headmistress now." They discussed this over breakfast, and then headed their separate ways. Harry had a free period, so he retrieved their Firebolts, and couldn't resist taking his for a fly.

They hadn't been able to see it in the dark last night, but the Quidditch pitch had been rebuilt, and it looked amazing. Harry had never noticed anything wrong with the old pitch, but this new one was amazing. Before there had been large stands for each house, now there was a proper stadium. It looked like it could host the Quidditch World Cup. He flew inside it, even though it was probably against the rules. Inside was even better, there was a large box for the teachers and staff, which looked just like the Minister of Magic's box at the World Cup. Then, each house had its own stand, with the seats coloured to match each house. Harry couldn't believe it, there was even a confectionary stand, sponsored by Honeydukes. By the looks of it each team had its own locker room, and below was a merchandise shop. It had everything you would expect to find in a Muggle football pitch, and when Harry thought about it, it looked like a circular version of Stamford Bridge in London.

OoOoOoOoO

He caught Ginny just before he had to head off to class. "Brooms are in the same cupboard as last night, go for a fly!"

"Why?" Ginny asked.

"I don't want to spoil the surprise, just go for a fly!"

"Alright then," Ginny replied, "I don't really understand why you're asking me to, but I will head down and get my Firebolt." Harry gave her a quick kiss and headed down to Hagrids. He arrived at the hut before everyone else, and turned to see a fiery red streak take to the sky. He smiled, Ginny would soon see the new pitch.

"Harry!" Hagrid roared in delight, "good to see ya!"

"Hi Hagrid, am I early?"

"No," Hagrid replied, his head drooping, "yer the only seventh year takin' my class."

"Oh," Harry replied, unsure what to say, "well, we have more time to spend together then, and it'll save me the use of my cloak."

"It will that," Hagrid replied, his face looking more cheerful, "so, how'd you like to go see Buckbeak?" Harry was delighted, he hadn't seen Buckbeak in quite some time. It would be good to be able to fly again, and Care of Magical Creatures might now be more fun than he originally thought.


	4. The Cedric Diggory Quidditch Cup

Heyy! Here is chapter 4! I hope you are excited about the revelation(s) in this chapter! Read and review!

Iron Man.

Harry was caught up by Ginny as he headed into DADA. "The Quidditch pitch!" Ginny whispered into his ear.

"I don't think," Harry whispered back, "the word 'pitch' does it justice."

"You're quite right." Was her reply. Their happiness didn't last very long, because they met their new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher. Narcissa Malfoy. Ginny and Harry weren't the only ones that were none to pleased. Harry decided to break the silence.

"They are going to let you teach!?" He could hear murmurs of appreciation behind him.

"I realise I am far from your first choice of teacher, but-"

"That would be because all our other choices were murdered!" Ginny cut her off. Narcissa bit her lip.

"I fully understand your resentment, but I have never killed another person, and never intend to." Narcissa said, trying to keep herself calm.

"Well that makes everything OK!" Neville chimed in sarcastically. "In fact, lets have Umbridge back too!" The whole class roared in support.

"Do you not think the school had reason to put me here?" She asked, a hint of authority in her voice. "I am, as you pointed out, experienced in Dark Magic. Therefore I also know how to counter it, or did you think a disarming spell and a Patronus Charm would be sufficient protection?"

"Worked for Harry!" Someone yelled behind him.

"Yea!" Someone else joined in, "don't see You-Know-Who running around anymore!" A cheer tore through the classroom. Narcissa laughed dryly, staring at the class as though they were the most pathetic thing she had ever seen.

Harry, could feel the anger rising inside him. He remembered the battle, Dumbledore's death, the Department of Mysteries, Sirius. Then he looked at Narcissa laughing at them, and the rage consumed him. "Expecto Patronum!" Harry bellowed. The entire class was shocked. He had produced his usual stag, but it was a dark red.

Harry couldn't explain it to Ginny when they eventually left the classroom. He had no idea why his Patronus had appeared in red instead of blue. He could only assume that, it had reflected the anger inside him. He walked arm in arm with Ginny to the Great Hall, word of his outburst had obviously spread. He ignored the stares, he gotten used to doing that over the years.

OoOoOoOoO

"If I could have your attention please," McGonagall's voice rang out across the Great Hall, "I have a rather important announcement, which I think most of you will be excited about." Harry was indeed, intrigued. What was Mcgonagall going to tell them? "I'm sure there has been a lot of chatter about the new Quidditch facilities." Evidently news of Harry's red Patronus had yet to reach her ears. "We must first thank Arthur and Ronald Weasley for their involvement in the design of our new facilities. Which include; A very large stadium with a full size pitch, locker rooms and grandstands for each house, a confectionary store proudly sponsored by Honeydukes." A round of applause swept the hall, "yes, many thanks to Honeydukes, at the foot of the stadium we have a memorabilia store, kindly supported by Weasley's Wizard Wheezes." Another cheer. Harry and Ginny turned to each other, but neither had know of the Weasley's involvement in the Quidditch stadium. "I must stress that Weasley's Wizard Wheezes provided the funding for the store, and NOT the product! Finally, we have a large indoor training facility, kindly donated by the Chudley Cannons!" A cheer mixed with a few groans rose from the crowd. Harry could picture Ron's gleeful face at this announcement. He loved the Cannons.

"This afternoon," McGonagall went on, "all classes have been cancelled!" The loudest cheer of the day rung out. "In exactly one hour, Minister for Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt, will cut the ribbon to officially open the Severus Snape Memorial Stadium!" The Great Hall fell silent. Harry rose to his feet, and started clapping. Ginny and Neville followed suit, as did Luna. Some of the first years joined in, then the Slytherin table rose to their feet too. Not to be beaten by Slytherin, the other houses rose to their feet and made double the noise. Harry smiled, not everyone knew it yet, but Severus Snape was the bravest man to have ever lived.

McGonagall gave Harry a nod before speaking again. "I have not quite finished." Murmurs swept through McGonagall's captivated audience. "Many of you may remember the events of the TriWizard Cup. It was a sad time for all at Hogwarts, but also a time in which we made new friends and rivals. Therefore, Hogwarts, Beauxbatons Academy and Durmstrang will compete against each other for the Cedric Diggory Quidditch Cup!" A huge cheer broke out once again, Harry wondered if there would come a point when they weren't cheering. "The first match will be played here at Hogwarts, against Beauxbatons Academy, I have chosen a Hogwarts Captain, who will select members from each House team to play for the school. Enjoy your lunch, and be sure to arrive at the stadium before 1 o'clock." With that McGonagall left the Great Hall, leaving everyone to wonder who had been chosen as Hogwarts Captain.

OoOoOoOoOoO

The stadium opening was a grand affair, several of the Ministry's high ranking members showed up. Kingsley Shacklebolt was surrounded by a team of Aurors. Mr. Weasley was there, as was George and a representative from Honeydukes. Harry also saw a few Chudley Cannons jumpers floating about, suggesting people had been sent to represent the Quidditch team. A cheer went up as Kingsley cut the ribbon and people flooded onto the pitch. Harry and Ginny walked towards Mr. Weasley, before McGonagall intercepted them. "I wonder if I could have a word Potter." Harry knew she wasn't really asking, so left Ginny to talk with her family, and walked towards the Gryffindor locker room with the Headmistress. "What do you think of the stadium?" She asked.

"Its amazing, it looks like a Muggle football stadium, I love it!"

"Yes," McGonagall replied, "Arthur Weasley convinced the architect to base his design off a stadium in London called Stamford Bridge. Home of Chelsea Football Club apparently." Harry had seen Stamford Bridge once, but the Dursley's never allowed him to watch football so he didn't really have a favourite team, but he was impressed by Chelsea's stadium. "I wanted to talk to you Harry, because I've decided to make you Hogwarts Captain, as a reward for your services to the Wizarding World."

"Really?" Harry was shocked, he assumed it would be Ginny, or someone from another house. "Well eh, thank you."

"Now Potter, I know Miss Weasley has a guaranteed spot on the team, but I want you to take the best players from each house. Even Slytherin." She added, possibly sensing a little discomfort.

"I certainly will Professor," Harry replied, "I've never seen Beauxbatons play, but everyone knows Durmstrang need to be taken seriously, they did have Krum at one point."

"Funny you should bring him up," McGonagall said, "he happens to be coaching their team."

Harry groaned, "great." Harry was a decent flyer himself, but Krum had played in the World Cup Final while he was still in school. If he was coaching Durmstrang, Harry could use the Irish international team to coach Hogwarts.

"If you are familiar with Quidditch, it may not come as much consolation, but the Chudley Cannons have offered to assist you in any way you need." Harry didn't follow Quidditch, but he knew enough to know that the Cannons were a bottom of the league team. He couldn't think of any way in which they would help against a team coached by Viktor Krum, but then he had an idea.

"Could you ask the Cannons if they have any decent brooms going spare? A lot of people have their own, but for those who don't, I don't think the school brooms will cut it." McGonagall nodded. Hogwarts may not be coached by the best Seeker in the world, but hopefully they would have decent brooms to play on.


	5. Chapter 5 Selecting the Team

Heyy! Here is chapter 5! I hope you all enjoy it, so read and review! Also, to the guest who left a very long review, thank you very much, your review was very thought provoking. If you're reading this, you should create an account. Also, I won't be making Harry an Auror...

Iron Man.

Harry had neglected to tell anyone but Ginny that he had been named Hogwarts Captain. McGonagall had agreed to keep it quiet too, Harry wanted to watch the other teams training. If he was caught, he would just say he was spying for the Gryffindor team. Harry thought that, if nobody knew he was captain, then he wouldn't have people pestering him and he could choose his team on skill alone.

There was of course the Gryffindor team to tryout for, though Harry was pretty sure he had a good chance of making the team. Ginny of course, would be on the Hogwarts team. Not just because she was Harry's girlfriend, she was also one of the best Quidditch players in the school. It seemed to run in the Weasley family.

OoOoOoOoO

Gryffindor tryouts went just as Harry expected. He was now Gryffindor Seeker for a 6th time. Ginny, would of course be playing as Chaser. Peakes and Coote returned as Beaters, Demelza Robins would also return as Chaser. The final Chaser Ginny had picked was OK, she had nothing on Katie Bell, or Angelina Johnson though. Harry didn't know the keeper either, but he saved 3 out of 5 shots. Which was more than anyone else who had tried out for the position. It felt strange, not having Ron on the team.

Satisfied that Ginny had picked a good enough team, he pulled her to one side just as everyone began to walk off the pitch. "Lets go for a fly," he said, he continued once they were out of earshot, "We're going to spy on the Hufflepuff tryouts."

"Harry!" Ginny hissed, "you can't do that!"

"I can actually, we are going to need a better Keeper for the Hogwarts team, and a Chaser. Possibly a third beater, so we can alternate them."

"But, it seems wrong!" Ginny clearly wasn't happy.

"Krum's coaching Durmstrang." Harry had saved this piece of information, incase a dilemma like this came up.

"Krum? Then who's coaching us?" Ginny seemed a little concerned.

"Us two." Harry replied with a grimace, "the Cannons have offered to help in any way they can."

"Fat lot of good that'll do!" Ginny spat. "They are at the bottom of the league, Krum's one of the best players in the world."

"I know, thats why I want to watch all tryouts and practice sessions. We'll find the best players in the school, and I've asked the Cannons if they have any brooms we could use. They might be bottom of the league, but I reckon they have better brooms than the school."

"So we'll be using your cloak?"

"Yep," Harry replied, "I think we'll sit in the big box seats too."

OoOoOoOoO

The Hufflepuff Keeper was dreadful. So were the Chasers. They really did not have a strong team this year, although they had chosen one Beater who was reasonably good and would make a fair substitute. Harry hoped Ravenclaw or Slytherin would have the players he desired. He would be in a bit of trouble if they didn't. Hogwarts would need a strong team to stand a chance against Durmstrang, and he couldn't count Beauxbatons Academy out either, they could be the best out of the three schools.

"We definitely need a better Keeper." Harry moaned, "hopefully Ravenclaw and Slytherin have better players."

"I hope so," Ginny replied, "but the other houses don't hold tryouts till next week, and we don't have much time to put together a team and train before Beauxbatons arrive."

"There's also the matter of broomsticks, the Hufflepuff beater was using a school broom. I hope the Cannons pull through." Harry's wish came true, the next morning at breakfast, the post was delivered. Harry was tucking into a bowl of porridge when a school owl swooped down from the rafters and stuck its leg out to give Harry a letter.

_**Dear Mr Potter,**_

_**Having received a letter the Headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, it has come to our attention that the team representing the school is in need of some better brooms. As former students, investors, and fans, we at the Chudley Cannons would be delighted to help you out.**_

_**We also know you would like to remain anonymous as Captain of the team, so delivery of the broomsticks has been done discreetly. In the Gryffindor locker room, you will find 10 brand new Nimbus 2001 racing brooms. We hope these will be sufficient for your needs, and all we ask in return is that you reserve us good seats for the home matches.**_

_**Good luck in your tournament, **_  
_**Gregory Rookwood. **_  
_**Manager, Chudley Cannons.**_

Harry was incredibly pleased, and was about to show Ginny the letter. Until he noticed the surname of the man who had sent the letter. Rookwood. Augustus Rookwood had killed Fred Weasley. It seemed cruel, Harry doubted Gregory Rookwood was an evil Death Eater spy, but that didn't make it comforting to see the name at the bottom of the letter. Harry decided against showing Ginny the letter, instead he took her hand. "Come on, I have something important to show you." Ginny didn't argue, and left the Great Hall with him.

OoOoOoOoO

"They're so ugly!" Ginny cried out when she saw them.

"At least we have them," Harry tried to reason, but Ginny was right. The ten Nimbus 2001's were bright orange, the Chudley Cannons team colours. "The Cannons invested a lot of money in the team, we can allow the free advertising. I also have to reserve them decent seats."

"What do you mean?"

"They manager asked for decent seats at the home games, in return for the brooms."

"He just expects you to get him seats does he?" Ginny's temper was beginning to show.

"They are decent brooms Ginny, and you never know, they might scout some of our players. Then everybody wins."

"Because its everyone's dream to play for the Cannons." Ginny hit back, but her voice had softened, and she hugged tightly into Harry's chest. He would gladly have stayed that way all day, but they had to hide the brooms.

OoOoOoOoO

The brooms being sent by the Cannons seemed to have turned Harry's luck around. Ravenclaw had given him the Chaser he needed, and Slytherin had a surprisingly brilliant Keeper. Only a second year, but not a shot got past him. He rode a school broom too, so Harry couldn't wait to stick him on a brand new Nimbus. He had handed his team list to McGonagall, who would inform each player that they had made either the starting, or reserve team.

First of all though, Harry had to concentrate on the opening game of the school season, against Hufflepuff. Ginny had crammed three training sessions into the last week before the game, so Gryffindor were as prepared as they could be. While Harry, and most of the school was busy thinking about Durmstrang, Ginny had not taken her eyes off the House Cup. She was determined to win it again, especially being the Captain.

"You ready for this game?" She asked Harry.  
"I think you whipped us into shape." It was true, Ginny had a real knack for being Captain. The Gryffindor team had started training off dreadfully. Ginny then spent hours in the Common Room, planning strategies, looking into new formations. She translated this onto the pitch. The Gryffindor team were much sharper, quicker, they had a solid defence, and the Keeper was saving more goals. Harry thought they had a good chance of winning.

Breakfast finished quickly, as it did before every game of Quidditch. Everyone started making their way out of the Great Hall. Anticipation was higher than usual for the first game of the year. Today would be the first time a game had been played in the Severus Snape Memorial Stadium. Not only that, Beauxbatons had arrived and were coming to watch the game, and thanks to Harry, the Chudley Cannons had bagged box seats. The Cannons were in their off-season, and had taken a break from training to come and watch the game.


	6. Chapter 6 The Opening Match

Heyy! This is a kinda fast-paced chapter, so I hope you still enjoy it. Read and review!

Iron Man.

Harry felt excited when the team was ready. He stepped out onto the pitch, hand in hand with Ginny. The stadium roared to life, seeing it for the first time was amazing, but seeing it with a large crowd cheering and waving was something else entirely. The stadium was by no means full, but you could still sense the atmosphere inside. Everyone wanted a good game to open the season.

"Give them a good show." Harry whispered to Ginny. She nodded.

"Captains, shake hands." Harry hadn't seen Madame Hooch in so long, but he didn't have time for a catch up. Ginny shook hands with the Hufflepuff Captain, and everyone took to the air. Harry waited for the release of the Quaffle, his heart thumping in his chest, when suddenly, he heard a familiar voice from the commentary box.

"Here we are, the first game in the Severus Snape Memorial Stadium!" Lee Jordan's voice boomed out across the stands. "Keep your eyes on the new Gryffindor Captain, Ginny Weasley! I know I will, she has grown up nicely." This earned Lee a few cheers, and a furious glare from Harry. This didn't stop Lee though, "and she's riding a Firebolt! Maybe if I dated Harry..."

Harry let the crowd laugh and waited for the Quaffle to be tossed. The second it left Madame Hooch's fingers, Harry yelled to Coote. With terrifying accuracy, Coote sent a Bludger thundering towards the commentary box. Lee managed to roll out of the way with only seconds to spare. Flustered, Lee recovered and decided not to throw anymore jibes Harry's way.

OoOoOoOoOoO

The game started out badly for Gryffindor. Coote's hit towards Lee Jordan resulted in Hufflepuff earning a penalty with only 4 seconds played. They immediately went 10-0 up, and Gryffindor couldn't make a decent play afterwards. With 20 minutes played, there was no sign of the Snitch, and Hufflepuff were leading 120-70. Harry searched frantically for the little golden ball that would save him the embarrassment of losing the opening match.

Ginny flew up beside him when they were down 170-70. "This can't go on, anymore goals from them and soon a Snitch grab won't save us. I need you to stop circling overhead, and start taking the Quaffle."

"But Ginny-"

"I know!" She cut him off, "but obviously whatever they were doing in training while we were busy scouting the Slytherin Keeper, has paid off. Im running out of options Harry, the Snitch isn't here and we need the points. Get down there and start playing Chaser."

Harry did what he was told. For the remainder of the game, Ginny wasn't his girlfriend, she was his Captain. He did whatever she asked of him. He started off uneasily, and wasn't helped by Lee Jordan. "It seems Potter has given up all hope of catching the Snitch and- hang on, whats he doing with the Quaffle?"

Determined not to let Lee Jordan win, Harry intercepted a cross from Hufflepuff and made his way towards the left hoop, faked a shot, and crossed to Demelza Robins who fired a rocket through the middle hoop. This gained them 10 points but they were still too far behind Huffflepuff. This time Harry grabbed the Quaffle and dived towards the pitch. Then he weaved through each post, to confuse the Hufflepuff Chasers tailing him, and lobbed a high ball to Ginny, who threw it easily through the right hoop.

This good play didn't last long though. The Hufflepuff Beater Harry had scouted for the Hogwarts team, hit a Bludger which knocked Demelza Robins off her broom, taking away the advantage of having Harry playing Chaser. It got worse still, the same Beater took out another Gryffindor Chaser, leaving just Harry and Ginny playing at the hoops. Hufflepuff were up 240-90, a Snitch grab would end the game in a tie, which seemed the best result Gryffindor could hope for.

Then astonishingly, Peakes made the best play of the match. He hit a Bludger with a huge amount of power, which collided mid-air with the Quaffle and sent it spiralling into the left hoop. This was short-lived however, Coote committed a foul, giving Hufflepuff a penalty. Gryffindor could only stand and watch, if their keeper missed they would lose their only real chance of winning.

The stadium was silent, until Lee Jordan spoke. "The Hufflepuff Captain has come forward to take the penalty, Gryffindor must be feeling very tense right now." Then Harry spotted it. The Golden Snitch was lazily circling the pitch below. "You can feel the anticipation as Madame Hooch hands over the Quaffle, a goal here would surely end Gryffindor."

"Ginny you need to score!" Harry hissed. She could obviously hear the urgency, mixed with excitement, in his voice for she suddenly looked sharp, and awake. The Hufflepuff Captain made his way to the hoops agonisingly slowly, he faked left and threw right. Harry didn't wait to see the result, he could here a loud roar as he dived towards the Snitch. No doubt Hufflepuff were celebrating.

Lee Jordan's voice rang out again, "Ginny Weasley with the Quaffle now, she makes it past the Hufflepuff Chaser's, now she has a Bludger to contend with, she speeds past it! That Firebolt surely helped out there!" Harry could almost grab the Snitch, but he needed Ginny to score, and the Snitch was speeding up now. "Weasley is coming up on the hoops fast, with Hufflepuff hot on her tail. Coote takes out a Hufflepuff Chaser with a missile from the other side of the pitch!" Lee was getting incredibly excited with this passage of play.

"Weasley scores for Gryffindor!" Cheers rang out across the stadium, and Harry put the hammer down to catch up with the Snitch. "Hufflepuff are frantic now, look at them charging forward! Potter has seen the Snitch, the Hufflepuff Seeker is too far away! Hufflepuff desperate for a goal now, here they come! They've just the Keeper to beat!" Harry's heart was pounding, he needed to get the Snitch. He had his hand outstretched, inches from the little golden ball. "Saved! Gryffindor could win it now! Harry Potter, inches from glory," Harry was in a dive, the ground coming up fast, he had his hand nearly around the ball, "He's done it! Harry Potter has caught the Snitch!"

OoOoOoOoO

The Gryffindor fans went insane. Harry pulled out his dive and turned around, to almost collide with Ginny. Before they could talk though, a high pitched squeal emitted from the commentary box. "would you believe it!? Down by 140 points, Gryffindor win 260-240!" So the Keeper had saved the penalty after all, the cheers had been from Gryffindor. "What a heroic performance, possibly the best comeback I've ever witnessed, and definitely the biggest upset Hogwarts has ever seen! Gryffindor save the penalty, Ginny Weasley scores with an assistance from Coote, Harry Potter grabs the Snitch, and who can forget Jimmy Peakes's amazing goal with the Bludger that made it all possible!"

"We gave them a show Harry." Ginny whispered in his ear, not able to find any words to reply with, wolf whistles escaped the crowd as Harry leaned over and kissed her. "Well, we definitely have now!" She exclaimed, turning a little red as she looked at the crowd.

OoOoOoOoO

"Harry Potter!" A voice exclaimed behind him as he left the locker room. "Wonderful match young man, wonderful! That dive for the Snitch took my breath away." He turned to Ginny, "you must be the Captain that led Gryffindor to glory, excellent tactic you employed, having Harry act as Chaser. It's not often you see that type of creativity."

"Eh, thank you," Ginny replied, "who might you be? If you don't mind me asking."

"Not at all," the man replied enthusiastically, "Gregory Rookwood, Manager of the Chudley Cannons." Ginny flinched at the name but made no comment. "I have come to speak to you, because I want to offer you both a place on the Chudley Cannons starting team."

"You want us to play for the Cannons?" Harry was only mildly intrigued, he had heard stories about how bad a team the Cannons were.

"Yes," the man replied, "many of our players will likely retire soon, and no big star wants to sign for the Cannons. Its difficult you see, the owners want big changes, they want to win the league. But I can't win the league with the current team, and the Holyhead Harpies are signing all the best players. We need something to re-energise the team, and to stop more sponsors from abandoning us. I think the two of you are the fast, creative players we need. You work well together, have brilliant strategies and aren't afraid of a challenge."

He was really trying to win them over. Harry felt sympathy towards the man, he had a team that was failing to win games, and he couldn't find anyone willing to sign for them. Harry had never considered trying to become a professional Quidditch player, he had always planned to become an Auror. It was an appealing career choice, although Harry wasn't sure the Cannons would be his first pick of teams to play for. He was also certain Ginny would rather play for the Holyhead Harpies, he wished Ron had been given the offer, then an idea hit him. "Can we take a few days to think it over?" Harry asked, "it will affect our lives quite a bit, and we have school too."

"Absolutely," the man replied, though Harry sensed he had lost hope. "You can get back to me once you have made your decision. We won't actually have you play till you've finished school, but if you choose to join us, we can schedule a meeting to negotiate your contracts, payment etc."

"I know someone who would join you in a heartbeat," Harry quickly put in. The man raised an eyebrow, "his name's Ronald Weasley, young lad, great Keeper, huge fan of the Cannons. The only problem is, he's currently in Australia, he could be there a while. Send him an owl though, he'd be delighted to try out for you when he gets back."

"Thank you Harry, I shall look into it." Gregory Rookwood gave them a smile and left, leaving Harry and Ginny to ponder a shocking move to sign for the Cannons.


	7. The Boy Who Plays For Chudley?

Heyy! Here is chapter 7! I hope you like it, as always, read and review. Note the cheesy line at the end :)

"Seriously!? He wants us to play for the Chudley Cannons?" Harry couldn't tell whether Ginny was insulted, or thought it was hilarious. She seemed to be feeling a mixture of the two. "Does he expect us to win the League? Even the Irish team couldn't win the League for the Cannons. The Harpies have had the best team for ages."

"I expect he's trying to gain new fans, and sponsors. I mean, just look at me, I'm gorgeous." The joke earned Harry an elbow in the ribs, "though not half as beautiful as you." That didn't help, in fact, Harry gained another elbow in the ribs. He knew Ginny wanted to play for the Holyhead Harpies, but he couldn't help but think that signing for the Cannons would help them gain fans, and more importantly, sponsors.

If Quidditch worked anything like Muggle sports, then the best teams would have the highest paying sponsors, the best players, bigger stadiums, and a large fan-base. Going by rumours, the Cannons were far from the best, bottom of the League every year in fact. Harry hated the fame he had, but what if he could use it to help the Cannons? Not that he wanted to play for a losing team. Gregory Rookwood had given him a horrible dilemma.

OoOoOoOoO

The next morning was awful. The school owls arrived with the post, and someone passed around their copy of the Daily Prophet. Usually, the Prophet made up half of the news, and snapped some pictures for the rest of it. This time however, they had gotten it frighteningly accurate.

**The Boy Who Plays For Chudley?**

**_Hero of the Wizarding World, Harry Potter, pictured above, has caused quite the drama at Hogwarts this term. With no Dark Lord to defeat, many were wondering what Harry would do next. Well, what better way to draw attention to yourself than make one of the biggest Quidditch comebacks in the last 50 years? Yes, the opening match of the season at_** _**Hogwarts was quite a spectacle.**_

_**Sources on the inside however, were drawn away from the result of the match, after seeing what transpired post-game. Gregory Rookwood, Manager of the Chudley Cannons, was seen in deep conversation with Potter and another Gryffindor player, outside the locker room of the Severus Snape Memorial Stadium. Could Rookwood be trying to close a deal with Potter?**_

_**Yes, as if he has to prove it further, Harry Potter is great on a broomstick. Harry has flown his signature Firebolt racing broom to House Cup glory, used it to capture a golden egg from a Hungarian Horntail, and will surely be on the Hogwarts team to play in the Cedric Diggory Quidditch Cup. Should the Cannons manage to sign him, not only would it be a huge achievement for Rookwood, who's career has been in question lately, but it could bring sponsors flooding in, something the Cannons need desperately.**_

**_Last year the Cannons had the worst season in their history. They managed only five wins, two of them off-season. Its not up for question that the Cannons need some star power on the team, not able to lure world-class players with the prospect of trophies, perhaps the Cannons will attempt to sign Potter in order to gain huge endorsements. With lots of money, the Cannons may be able to start re-building the team, and allow their older and weary players to retire._**

_**It is unconfirmed whether Potter has any plans to play professional Quidditch at all, but the Cannons would surely be eager to sign him if he chose to try and become a Seeker. With this news, other teams will be flocking to Potter to see him play. Right now, nobody wants to play for the Cannons. Why should Potter be any different?**_

_**Due to their strict all female, names beginning with G policy; current champions the Holyhead Harpies, are not an option for Harry. So, here at the Prophet we have analysed three teams Harry could sign for instead of the Cannons:**_

_**The Appleby Arrows. The Arrows had a strong team last year, but were unfortunately plagued by injuries. This resulted in a disappointing fifth place, for a team who looked like** **real championship contenders. With the retirement of their Seeker at the end of last season, Potter could be a good candidate for the position.**_

_**Pride of Portree. Who saw Portree coming last year? With a surprising third place at the end of last season, Portree are a team on the rise. With their current Seeker heading off to champions, the Holyhead Harpies, could Potter be the Seeker that takes them all the way?**_

_**Kenmare Kestrels. The only Irish team in the league posted a seventh place finish last season. Disappointing for them to say the least. With World Champion Seeker Aidan Lynch's future in doubt, after one-too-many hits with a Bludger, perhaps Potter could breathe life back into the team. It has been 6 years since they won the League, and the Harpies don't seem to be going away anytime soon.**_

OoOoOoOoO

Harry snapped the paper shut in frustration. He hated the profit, but they were right. When he had finished reading, four owls landed in front of him and stuck their legs out. The first letter was from the Appleby Arrows, asking him to try out for the reserve team. The second was from the Kenmare Kestrels, offering him a job without even seeing him play. The third was from an American team, called the Fitchburg Finches. They wanted him to play in the American league, which could use some 'British skill and class.' The fourth was more interesting, it was from Firebolt.

**_Dear Mr Potter,_**

**_First and foremost we would like to thank you for being a loyal supporter of the Firebolt brand over the years. Here at Firebolt we pride ourselves on making the best quality brooms available. Due to recent rumours of you signing with the Chudley Cannons, we would like to offer you a sponsorship deal._**

**_If you choose to sign with the Cannons, we will fit the entire team out with our new Firebolt model, coming later this year. It is faster and lighter than the previous model, which we believe you currently own. On top of this, we will gift your school with 30 of our Comet 260 models. As for you personally we are prepared to offer you 15,000 Galleons a year. In return, we ask that you allow us to use your image for promotional gain, and that you promote the Firebolt brand for use in all competitions._**

**_Please reply when you have reached your decision,  
All the team at Firebolt._**

"They want you to represent Firebolt!?" Ginny asked, reading over his shoulder.

"Keep it down!" Harry hissed. "Yes, it seems a good deal too, but only if I choose to sign with the Cannons."

"Do you want to sign for the Cannons?" Ginny asked.

"I don't know, I know signing for them would bring them big sponsors, but I don't want to be there forever, and I don't want to be anywhere without you. Voldemort took so much from me, so now I'm intent on enjoying my life to the fullest."

"Harry, your always doing things for other people. Its time you had some fun, we'll both sign a one year contract with the Cannons. We'll get to do something we both love, and we'll do it together. After that, I want to try and join the Harpies, you can do whatever you think is best for you, so long as we're together. " Ginny squeezed his hand and laid her head on his shoulder. "Promise we'll stay together Harry."

Harry replied, "always."


	8. This is what you both really want?

Heyy! Here is chapter 8! I hope you all enjoy it, as always, read and review! Could be a few days till the next chapter goes up.

Iron Man.

**_Dear Mr Rookwood,_**

**_After great consideration, Ginny and I have reached our decision. We would both like to sign one year contracts to play for the Chudley Cannons. Furthermore, I recently received a letter from Firebolt. Because I have decided to sign for the Cannons, Firebolt are going to equip the entire team with the latest model. Firebolt are also gifting Hogwarts with thirty of their Comet 260 models. Due to the pair of us being at school, Ginny and I wont be playing until next season. However, I hope I can schedule a meeting that benefits all three of us. Ginny and I will speak to our Headmistress, and hopefully we will be given a place to meet and discuss contracts etc.._**

**_As you may have noticed, the Daily Prophet is following the story. I do not wish to break the news to the public until we have agreed a contract, and we would also like to give an exclusive interview to The Quibbler rather than the Prophet. I am committed to playing for the Cannons, and have rejected all other offers. I hope that you take me up on my suggestion to give Ronald Weasley a trial as Keeper.  
Looking forward to next year,  
Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley._**

Gregory Rookwood beamed as he handed the letter to the owner of the Chudley Cannons. He had just made the biggest signing of his career as a manager. Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley would become Quidditch's new power couple, and the new face of the Cannons. Gregory had the chance to do what no other manager had been able to do, turn the Cannons around. This signing had surely cemented Gregory's career.

OoOoOoOoO

Harry sat gazing into the fire in the Gryffindor Common Room, Ginny asleep in his lap. They had been doing this a lot, staying up later than everyone else and getting cosy by the fire. Harry enjoyed it, but it didn't go without comments from his classmates. Neville had asked seriously; "so, when are you guys moving in together?" Harry had laughed it off, but it had been nagging on his mind. Would they ever move in together? Harry was filled with joy at the prospect of having Ginny with him, all day, every day. But he also knew it would have to wait, Ginny was still only sixteen and Harry was only a year older himself. Besides, they had their place, at the Burrow. Mrs. Weasley had all but adopted him. However late it was, Harry loved the idea of having a real family.

Still, if they were going to play for the Cannons next year, they wouldn't be able to stay at the Burrow. They would need to live near the Cannons stadium. Would Mrs. Weasley allow them to live together? What would Ron's reaction be? Harry tried to push these thoughts out of his head, but they kept coming back to him. They were going to play for the Cannons next year, they would have to leave the Burrow. "Ginny, wake up. We have something important to talk about."

OoOoOoOoO

"How am I supposed to try and reason with my Mum? She was sceptical about me playing for the Cannons. I don't think she'll let us live together Harry." The pair were flying around the castle. It often helped them think, and they were sure people couldn't hear their conversations when they were in the air.

"I don't know, but does she expect you to stay at home forever? We'll need to live near the Cannons. Otherwise we won't be able to train, or attend press conferences etc." Harry thought the idea might not go down well. Ginny had actually welcomed the idea, but she was right. They would have a tough time convincing Mrs. Weasley.

"She will think of plenty alternatives. Apparation, the Floo Network. As with all family arguments, we will need Dad on our side, and you'll have to be the one to ask him." Harry dreaded the time when he would have to ask Arthur Weasley, if he would give his permission to allow Harry and Ginny to live together.

OoOoOoOoO

**_Dear Harry,_**

**_Thank you for being open and honest in your letter. I understand you wanted to talk man to man, but school wont allow us that time. Molly and I are happy for the pair of you, getting signed to a professional Quidditch team! It is understandable that, you are both growing up and have careers of your own now._**

**_I know that you would always take care of Ginny, and I see no reason you couldn't live together, other than the pair of you being so young. I'm sure you know as well as I do though, that Molly will need a lot of convincing. We will be attending your match against Beauxbatons, afterwards we can all sit down and give it a thorough discussion and decide whether the two of you are ready to take this step._**

**_If the wars have taught me anything, they have taught me that life can be short and unpredictable, and you should enjoy all the time that you have.  
Arthur._**

Harry read Ginny the letter that night in the Common Room. She didn't say anything, she just hugged Harry tightly. Harry thought he had done OK. He had written a rather formal letter to Mr. Weasley, asking for his blessing. Mr. Weasley had replied much quicker than Harry had anticipated, but his reply gave Harry a little confidence. Ginny was right, to convince Mrs. Weasley, they would definitely need Mr. Weasley on side.

OoOoOoOoO

Tomorrow, Hogwarts would face Beauxbatons in the opening match of the Cedric Diggory Quidditch Cup. Harry was nervous, and not about the match. Practice had gone wonderfully for the Hogwarts team. They were a good, strong team. Hopefully they would provide good competition for the other schools. Right now that didn't matter, Mr and Mrs Weasley had arrived a day early. Harry and Ginny were headed to McGonagall's office to see them. The Headmistress wouldn't be present, she had given them the use of her office, so as to give them a comfortable place to talk in privacy.

"Good evening," Mrs. Weasley said as the pair entered the office, she was being nice enough, but you could hear the seriousness in her voice. "Please sit down, it seems we have a lot to discuss."

"That we do." Harry replied nervously, he had tried to imagine this scenario, but his imagination never let him come out on top.

"While I trust you Harry, your going to need a very convincing argument to win me over." Mrs. Weasley stared him dow. Harry wanted nothing more than to run and hide, but Ginny would never forgive him.

"Well as you know, Ginny and I will be playing for the Cannons next year. I think it would be beneficial, if we got our own place, near the hime stadium." Harry had a feeling this wasn't going well.

"So, because your off to play Quidditch, you want your own house? I'm sorry Harry, the two of you are just too young to-"

"Mum!" Ginny cut her off, Harry wanted to curl up and die. "Its not just about Quidditch! Harry and I want to have a real go at a life together, even when we're done with the Cannons."

"She's right,"Harry put in, Ginny gave his hand a reassuring squeeze, "I don't plan on spending my life with anyone else, Voldemort done everything in his power to destroy everything I care about. But he never succeeded, and now he never will."

"I understand Harry, but the risks involved-"

Mrs. Weasley was cut off again, "Mum can you honestly think of anyone who can keep me safe better than Harry? We will have protective enchantments put in place, we wouldn't leave ourselves defenceless. The war ripped apart peoples lives, peoples families. We've seen how short life can be, so we want to spend our lives together, and not waste any time in doing it."

"This is what you both really want?" Mrs. Weasley had tears in her eyes.

"Yes." They replied together.


	9. Chapter 9 Gryffindor's 8th Man

Heyy, heyy! Guess who got wifi? Here is the next chapter, I hope you all enjoy it, read and review!

Iron Man.

The day of the match had arrived. Harry could feel his stomach churning, but he was also secretly confident. Their star Keeper from Slytherin had only conceded 5 goals in all training sessions. Peakes and Coote were on top form, though the Hufflepuff beater was playing today. Harry wanted Peakes's strength for their game against Durmstrang, so he wasn't risking him getting injured today.

The team had a meeting in the Gryffindor locker room. Harry liked to hold team meetings in here, it was comfortable, and everything about it screamed Quidditch. Harry liked to give an Oliver Wood style speech before practices. He always conducted these speeches in front of a plaque he and Ginny had commissioned, it read:

**In loving memory of Colin Creevey.**

**Team photographer, friend and Gryffindors 8th man.  
We hope that you are still watching us fly Colin,  
Bring us luck in all our games.  
R.I.P.**

Harry read the plaque before every flight on his broom, he had also retired the number 7 jersey. It now hung above the plaque, bearing the name Creevey. Harry now wore the number 99.

OoOoOoOoO

Cheers erupted from the crowd as both teams took to the sky. Harry could see Hogwarts banners everywhere, and a large screen had been erected at one end of the stadium. Harry could see pictures of the Beauxbatons players appearing on the screen, and he could hear Lee Jordan calling their names out one by one.

Cheers came from the crowd again as the Hogwarts team was called out, the screen currently showed an excellent shot of Cootes sending a Bludger towards Hufflepuff. The loudest cheer went up when Ginny's image appeared on the screen, she was hunkered down on her Firebolt, delivering the killing blow to Hufflepuff.

Harry was furious. The crowd hissed and booed as the Slytherin Keeper was shown on the screen. He yelled various insults at the crowd, then flew over to the hoops to give the young Keeper some words of encouragement. They wouldn't be booing him once they seen him play, Harry couldn't pile enough praise on the boy. At the Slytherin tryouts he had blown the other Keepers out of the water, and on the Cannons Nimbus 2001 he had only gotten better.

OoOoOoOoO

The game started well for Hogwarts. Due to his success in the comeback against Hufflepuff, Harry dropped down into Chaser position every now and then. Ginny had devised a series of power plays that required four Chasers, so the team had spent a few days practicing these strategies. The Beaters had been tasked to circle the Hogwarts goals, after Peakes had scored with a Bludger against Hufflepuff, Harry had trained his Beaters to hit Bludgers at the Quaffle and intercept passes. They would also protect his star Keeper.

The entire crowd seemed excited by Hogwarts's unique strategies, but none more than Lee Jordan. "Here come Beauxbatons, trying to make some headway in this game. Coote hits another Bludger which intercepts the pass! Just where did the two Beaters come up with this strategy? Ginny Weasley with Quaffle now, she ducks a Bludger, comes up on goal, oh what a great play! Weasley fakes the shot, and crosses to Robins who taps it through the hoop!"

Hogwarts were now up 90-0, but Harry still searched frantically for the Snitch. He couldn't allow Beauxbatons to make a comeback like Gryffindor had. He ordered the team to push harder, while he scanned the skies for the tiny golden ball. Ginny scored another two goals, and Demelza Robins scored a penalty putting Hogwarts 120-0 up.

The Hufflepuff Beater had nothing on Peakes and Coote, but he was really trying to prove his worth. He hit a Bludger to the other end of the pitch, and took out one of the Beauxbatons Beaters. This only made it easier for the three Chasers, Hogwarts were 140-0 up when Harry dived for the Quaffle, only to be fouled by a Beauxbatons Chaser and draw a penalty.

Harry's nerves stirred in the pit of his stomach, he would be expected to take the penalty. Sure, he had played Chaser, passing the Quaffle or speeding away from Bludgers, but he had never made an attempt on goal. He tried to mimic Ginny's style, slowly weaving towards the Keeper. He got within two metres and tossed the Quaffle. It soared over the top of the left hoop. He could hear the sighs from Hogwarts fans, and the jeers coming from the Beauxbatons crowd.

The Ravenclaw chaser made up for his mistake. She dived and caught the Quaffle before it hit the ground, soared upwards and tossed it through the middle hoop, all the way into the stands. During all this excitement, Harry had sat feeling sorry for himself, and the Beauxbatons Seeker had spotted the Snitch.

Harry was much too far away. He could hear the Beauxbatons fans roaring in support. Lee Jordan's voice came from the commentary box. "Look at this! Beauxbatons have spotted the Snitch! Potter is too far away, even with a Firebolt he won't get there! Beauxbatons can level the game now!" Harry knew it, he had been careless and cost his team the game.

OoOoOoOoO

"Potter! Wake up!" It was Coote, he had slammed a Bludger into an oncoming Beauxbatons Chaser. The Ravenclaw Chaser plucked the Quaffle out of the air and tossed it to Demelza. Beauxbatons were determined though, Demelza was roughed up by two of their Chasers and took a Bludger to the chest. Despite this, she managed to get the Quaffle out to Ginny, but she was too close to the Beauxbatons Keeper. He could see her looking around anxiously for an opening.

"Ginny!" Harry yelled out. This was it. Harry had to score. He was the only player in a position to take a shot. If he didn't score, Beauxbatons would level the game when their Seeker caught the Snitch. Harry heart was thumping in his chest as the Quaffle left his fingertips. All of the noise in the stadium had been drowned out. Harry watched, the Quaffle seemed agonisingly slow.

OoOoOoOoO

Harry heard nothing as the Quaffle sailed through the left hoop. It took him a moment to realise what had just happened. He had scored. Hogwarts had won. The crowd stood in silent shock. Lee Jordan broke that silence. "Harry Potter scores! Beauxbatons catch the Snitch, Hogwarts win!"

The crowd woke up. The triumphant roars could be for several minutes. The Hogwarts team flew towards one another and hugged each other in celebration. The win wasn't what pleased Harry the most. The crowd could be heard chanting the name of the young Slytherin Keeper. He deserved it too, not a single shot made its way through the Hogwarts hoops.

OoOoOoOoO

"Harry, Ginny!" Gregory Rookwood beamed as they entered the box he was currently occupying in the stadium. "Fantastic game! Another show-stopping finish!" The pair shook hands with him and took a seat. "Now, onto the negotiation of your contracts." Gregory had a table set up, and two blank pieces of parchment lay atop it. "Why don't you tell me how much you think I should pay you, and I'll tell you why that is an unreasonable amount." The three laughed at the joke.

"Actually sir," Harry began, "we won't be needing much of a salary."

"Oh, and why is that?" Rookwood asked.

"Well, I have inherited a fair amount of money from my Parents and my Godfather. I have more than enough for the two of us, but what we do need is a house."

"A house?" The greying manager looked startled.

"Yes." Harry replied steadily. "We will need to stay somewhere near the Cannons am I right?" Rookwood nodded. "So rather than a salary, could you get us a house? We don't need anything fancy, just a place to stay."

"I know of a place." Harry and Ginny were thrilled. "Its nothing special mind you."

"We don't need special," Ginny spoke for the first time, "as long as we have a place we can stay together and call our own."

"All right then." Gregory Rookwood nodded. "If you would just sign at the bottom please." He waved his wand over the two pieces of parchment, which turned into two contracts. Harry read them over carefully, nodded to Ginny, and then they both signed at the bottom. They were now signed to the Chudley Cannons. But more importantly, had a place to call their own. Admittedly, Harry did own 12 Grimmauld Place, but he couldn't face going back. He wanted a fresh start, and he wanted this fresh start to be with Ginny.


	10. Chapter 10 Harry's Big Plan

Heyy! I got WiFi again! So here is the next chapter, read and review!

Iron Man.

Harry unfortunately never got to give his interview to The Quibbler. Xenophilous Lovegood didn't want to see him. Harry decided not to pursue it. The Prophet reported it the next day, Harry was always curious as to how they got their information so quickly.

**Potter Signs For Chudley Cannons**.

_**Harry Potter, sources confirmed today, will be playing for the Chudley Cannons next year. Potter has reportedly signed a one year deal for the side, and will start training when he leaves school.**_

_**Potter has been successful in his Quidditch lately. After beating Hufflepuff in the opening game of the school season, he led the Hogwarts team to a 160-150 win over Beauxbatons Academy in the opener of the Cedric Diggory Quidditch Cup. Due to the unique way this tournament is scored, Hogwarts lead the standings with 1 win and no losses. Beauxbatons will next host Durmstrang, then Hogwarts will travel to Durmstrang for the final match.**_

_**We have also received news that Harry has been endorsed by Firebolt. This will be good news for both Potter and the Cannons. Potter seems to favour the Firebolt brand, so a partnership between the two will only strengthen the bond. As for the Cannons, having their team ride a fleet of the new Firebolt brooms will be a huge confidence boost for the team.**_

_**It will be interesting to see what Potter can do for the Cannons next season. But perhaps what will be more interesting, is what the Cannons will be able to do this season. With Potter being the first of many new signings expected, current Cannons players should be keen to impress their boss if they wish to keep their spot.**_

_**The Cannons current Seeker, has decided to retire at the end of this season anyway, but the Cannons have apparently sold one of their Chasers to the floundering Kenmare Kestrals. Their reserve Chasers will be eager for the starting spot, but will any of them get the chance? The Cannons Board of Directors have been attending matches at Hogwarts, as has the Manager, Gregory Rookwood. It leaves many Quidditch fans wondering if the Cannons will make a surprise return to the top next year. Right now though, the Holyhead Harpies are still the team to beat.**_

"Not once did they mention my name!" Ginny was reading over Harry's shoulder.

"They will once they see you play." Harry tried.

"Sure they will," Ginny replied sarcastically, "I'm sure they'll talk more when we move into our new house!" Harry couldn't deny that. When the Prophet got hold of this news, the Wizarding World would go wild. Harry didn't get a chance to reply though, Neville had been listening in.

"You guys have a house?!"

"Announce it to the whole world why don't you!" Ginny spat.

"Sorry." Neville looked at his shoes.

"Its fine," Harry said, "just keep it to yourself." Neville nodded.

OoOoOoOoO

Harry and Ginny were curled up in their usual spot by the fire in the Gryffindor Common Room. "I can't believe we are actually going to do it," Ginny said, "next year we'll have our own house. It'll be just us Harry."

"I know," Harry smiled, "you sure this is what you want?"

"Absolutely," Ginny said firmly, "I know it'll be hard to leave home, it'll probably be worse for Mum, but I want to be with you Harry." He hugged her tightly into his chest and kissed the top of her forehead.

"Good," Harry said, "it would probably annoy the Cannons if you didn't, they are buying us a house after all."

OoOoOoOoO

Harry woke the next morning and was surprised to find the Boy's Dormitory empty, save Neville. Usually his classmates would all be in various stages of waking up, so the pair quickly got dressed and decided to investigate. "Surprise!" Cheers greeted the pair as they reached the bottom of the stairs.

"Whats the surprise all about?" Harry asked, rubbing sleep from his eyes.

"Its the 31st of July Harry.." Ginny said.

"So? Whats so great about the 31st?" Neville let out a laugh behind him, the realisation dawned on Harry as Ginny spoke again.

"Seriously Harry! You forgot your own birthday? Again!?"

"Its not hugely important to me."

"Well it is important to me!" Ginny stared at him in wonder, "so we decided to throw both of you a party." She glanced over at Neville. It made sense, the two of them had been born only hours apart.

"Eh, thanks." They both replied in unison. Ginny sighed, and pointed them towards a giant cake. That brought huge smiles to their faces.

OoOoOoOoO

Harry had never had a better birthday. Everyone had skipped breakfast and ate cake and butterbeer instead. All of his friends were there, someone had let Luna in. Harry received cards from the Weasley family, and surprisingly, one from the Minister of Magic. He also got one from the Chudley Cannons, and told the owl to wait while he wrote a quick letter.

Soon the Hogwarts Quidditch team showed up, after receiving Harry's invite. Harry let them in through the portrait, and they all wished him a happy birthday. The Slytherin Keeper seemed seriously nervous, but Harry sorted him out with a huge slab of cake which soon calmed him down.

Later Harry was led by Ginny into the broom cupboard where they had stashed their Firebolts when they arrived at school. They were unfortunately interrupted by the Ravenclaw Seeker, who had neglected to put his Nimbus 2000 into his teams locker room. "Eh, sorry for interrupting." He said, turning red in the face.

"No problem," Harry said rising to his feet, "good luck in your game today."

"Thanks," the Seeker replied, "Happy 18th."

OoOoOoOoO

Harry and Ginny were sitting in the Chudley Cannons box with Gregory Rookwood, watching Ravenclaw taking a heavy pounding from Slytherin. Harry's star Keeper was at his usual best. Slytherin were 120-0 up, back before the war, this would have annoyed Harry. Nowadays, Harry didn't care about what house a person was in, just what type of person they were.

Harry smiled as the Keeper saved a penalty with ease. "Amazing talent for someone so young!" Gregory Rookwood beamed.

"You should've seen Harry." Ginny put in before turning a bright shade of red.

"Well, I daresay I'll see plenty of Quidditch from the pair of you. Now that you've signed for the Cannons," the manager couldn't keep the smile off his face, "here are the deeds to your new home by the way." He handed Harry a scroll of parchment.

It was a pretty simple thing. Ginny read it over his shoulder. Both their names were written as owners of 'Vinehill Cottage, Chudley.' It sounded nice enough, it was in Chudley, so they surely wouldn't be far from the Cannons. "Vinehill Cottage." Ginny read aloud.

"Yes," their manager chimed in, "nice enough place, two bedrooms, a small garden. It used to be owned by a Mr and Mrs Evans. It needs a few minor repairs-"

"Evans?" Harry cut in, there was an edge to his voice.

"Yes, does the name mean something to you?"

"Yes," Harry replied in a soft voice, "it was my Mothers maiden name."

"They are not the same 'Evans' Harry, I'm sorry." Gregory put a hand on Harry's arm to comfort him.

"Its fine." Harry mumbled. He sat in silence for the rest of the game. He thought of his parents, and Sirius and Remus. He may not have any blood-relatives, but he did have a family. Ginny, Ron, Hermione, the rest of the Weasley's. Neville and Luna. He wished his Mum and Dad, Sirius and Remus were still alive, but he was never alone.

OoOoOoOoO

Harry was a little nervous, it was four days till Ginny's birthday. 11th of August. Th date was constantly at the forefront of his mind. He still hadn't gotten her anything. He knew she wouldn't mind, but he wanted to do something nice for her. He couldn't think of anything she wanted or needed. He had bought her a Firebolt before school started, they had their own house, what was he going to do?

His plan started formulating when permission slips were issued for visiting Hogsmeade. Harry was 18, so he didn't need one. Ginny's parents would surely sign hers, Harry would be with her, and George had bought Zonko's Joke Shop and had been there since school had started, setting up shop for the time when students visited the village. He started by writing a letter to George, asking for some of the things he would need. George replied quickly, agreeing to leave Harry's requests in the Shrieking Shack so Ginny wouldn't find out what he was up to.

Harry then snuck out of the school under his invisibility cloak, through the passage to the Shrieking Shack. After checking that George had gotten everything Harry had asked, he snuck into Hogsmeade, to Honeydukes. A quick conversation with the owner and Harry had something special being made for Ginny. Next he went to the Three Broomsticks, and reserved a few tables. Everything was set up, Harry had outdone himself. Ginny's birthday would be brilliant.


	11. Chapter 11 Happy Birthday Ginny!

Heyy guys! Managing to get a chapter up again! Here is Ginny's birthday, i hope you like it! Read and review! Also expect a new fic from me, as FF have added a category for the Kevin and Sadie series! (One of my all time favourites!)

Iron Man.

The 11th of August had arrived. Ginny Weasley rolled out of bed and wiped the sleep from her eyes. She was 17. She could use magic outside of school. Today they could visit Hogsmeade too, where she would use magic for every little thing. She showered, dressed and went downstairs. Admittedly she was a little disappointed. There was no surprise party when she got downstairs.

"Happy birthday gorgeous." Harry crept up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"It is now." she whispered, leaning back as he placed his head on her shoulder. He held out a small box in front of her.

"Go on, open it." She did.

"Harry! Its beautiful!" He had bought her a necklace. It was small, and hung from a silver chain. Two broomsticks crossed at the bottom, above them sat a deep blue stone. Tanzanite, Ginny thought. Above the stone, her name was written in delicate silver spirals. She carefully took it out of the box, "help me put it on." He reached to the back of her neck and joined the tiny metal clasps together. Today was going to be perfect.

OoOoOoOoO

Harry led Ginny down the path to Hogsmeade. They first visited the new Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, to see George. He was smiling and happy towards all of his customers, but it was an illusion Harry could see right through. George's eyes were dark and had lost their mischievous glint, his face was sunken in, and he had lost a fair bit of weight. Harry didn't comment, in case he upset him. George would have to overcome the grief in his own way.

"He doesn't look good." Ginny whispered.

"I know, but I don't think there's much we can do." Harry replied. Ginny nodded solemnly, she understood what George was going through.

Next they entered the Three Broomsticks. Neville and Luna were waiting for them, and best of all, Harry had managed to convince Bill Weasley to make the trip. Ginny immediately threw herself into her arms. "Bill! What are you doing here?"

"I received an owl from this man over here," he shook Harry's hand, "besides, I wouldn't want to miss your 17th birthday!" Having Bill there had really made Ginny's day, Harry never saw her smile drop for a second. Other people started arriving too, Quidditch players, Hagrid showed up and presented Ginny with some of his home baking, which Harry doubted she would eat. George came in, with a large armful of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes products. Professor Slughorn presented Ginny with an autographed photo of Gwenog Jones, Ginny's favourite Quidditch player. This earned him a fierce hug and a huge smile.

The party was soon in full swing, everyone was having a good time. Harry watched looked on as Ginny used her wand to cut up her food and refill her glass, she loved the novelty of using magic outside of school. Madame Rosmerta closed the Three Broomsticks, and joined in the party too. Music was playing, butterbeer was flowing, then Harry gave Madame Rosmerta a nod and she stopped the music. Everyone looked around to see why the music had stopped, Harry stepped up to explain.

"Sorry to stop the party everyone, but I think its time to bring out the cake!" Cheers went around the room. Madame Rosmerta wheeled it out from the back room.

OoOoOoOoO

Cake, was a poor description of the thing that took up the centre of the room. Honeydukes had outdone themselves. The cake consisted of three layers of sponge, one vanilla flavoured, one chocolate and one made of red velvet, which Harry had never tried, but it sounded delicious. It was iced in the Gryffindor colours, and had a pair of small enchanted broomsticks flying around it. Sparklers fired from the top, and miniature fireworks, donated by George, lit up the room and spelled out 'Happy Birthday Ginny!'

"Harry!" Ginny screamed as she threw her arms around him, "you did all this for me?"

"Well, Honeydukes did," Harry replied, "but I have my own surprises too."

"Theres more?" Ginny looked as though she were about to cry. She gripped him tightly before giving him a kiss on the cheek.

"There is," Harry smiled, "but first we have cake to eat."

OoOoOoOoO

Harry was pleased. The party had gone well. Ginny walked arm in arm with him, and lay her head on his shoulder. "Now the plan was," Harry started, "to finish off the day with a trip to Madame Puddifoot's .."

"Very funny Harry," Ginny laughed, "I think Honeydukes is a better idea, and I do want to thank them for that cake." The pair turned and walked back towards Honeydukes, Harry noticed a lot of students staring at them. Honestly, were there not more interesting things than a couple on a date?

OoOoOoOoO

"Thank you for today Harry, I couldn't have wished for a better birthday." Ginny lay sleepily in Harry's lap. He sat gazing at the clock, which confused her, until he spoke again.

"I have one more surprise for you, come on!" Ginny was excited by the prospect, and intrigued when he threw his invisibility cloak over the pair of them. Ginny was guided out of the Common Room, and up towards the Astronomy Tower.

"Harry, why are we-"

"Shh." He cut her off, and pressed a finger against her lips. He guided her over to the railing, and took off the cloak. "Just watch, and enjoy." Harry sent green sparks from the tip of his wand, which confused Ginny further. Until two minutes later.

From the edge of the Forbidden Forest, Ginny could see trails of fire shooting into the sky. When one exploded, she realised what Harry had done. "A firework display?" Harry nodded and smiled. Ginny kissed him on the cheek, she couldn't believe it. He had organised a firework display just for her. She watched as the night sky erupted into, red and gold, green and silver and blue. Ginny could cry with happiness. For a grand finale, the fireworks were larger, they covered the sky in red and gold. "Happy Birthday Ginny." Harry read the words as they appeared in the sky.


	12. Chapter 12 The Miracle in Europe

Heyy! Sorry this chapter has taken so long, it took me a while to get it right. I hope you enjoy it, so read and review! Also check out my new fic 'A Place of Our Own.'

A/N: this will seem weird, but will make sense late on in the fic. I would like you to go onto youtube, and type in 'fly eagles fly.' Click the top video and learn the song. It will seem so weird now, but you'll get more enjoyment from it when I release a certain chapter.

Iron Man.

**_The Miracle in Europe._**

**_In an amazing turn of events now being dubbed 'The Miracle in Europe,' Beauxbatons Academy, against all odds, defeated Durmstrang in the second match of the Cedric Diggory Quidditch Cup. The surprising win from Beauxbatons has left Quiddditch fans astonished, with one of the best Seekers in the world coaching their team, Durmstrang were hot favourites to take the trophy. Now, Hogwarts vs Durmstrang will decide who plays Beauxbatons a second time to decide the winner._**

**_Having played two games now, Beauxbatons now top the table due to the new scoring system in this cup. While many British fans would like Hogwarts to win, it does seem unlikely. While they played a good opening match, Hogwarts made an error that nearly cost them the game. As for the school's House Cup, Gryffindor - who make up the majority of the Hogwarts team - won their opening match out of luck, and desperation. The team will certainly need to be better prepared for Durmstrang, Beauxbatons may have lost to Hogwarts, but their clinical destruction of Durmstrang shows that they have improved greatly._**

**_Beauxbatons defended their home turf well, they opened up a 170 point lead over Durmstrang, who then caught the Snitch to end the game 20 points behind. Durmstrang coach, Viktor Krum, was visibly unhappy with his teams performance and gave this statement after the match: "I don't think the match could have been worse, the team were slow and gave up too many points early on in the game. Beauxbatons came out to redeem their loss at Hogwarts, and you can see that they have pushed themselves hard to get better, and to put on a good show at home." When asked if he thought Durmstrang could make a comeback, Krum replied: "Beauxbatons Academy have already won."_**

**_Quidditch fans now eagerly await next month, when the Hogwarts team travel to Durmstrang to try and take themselves to the final match against Beauxbatons. The table currently looks like this:_**

**Cedric Diggory Quidditch cup standings:**

** W. L. T. Pts.**

**Beauxbatons: 1 1 0 410**

**Hogwarts: 1 0 0 160**

**Durmstrang: 0 1 0 240**

"I hate the Prophet!" Ginny threw down the paper in frustration. "They praised us enough when we won our matches, but now Beauxbatons have won the cup just because they beat Durmstrang, and we supposedly aren't a good team? What a lot of rubbish! Who says we can't beat Durmstrang too?" Harry put a hand round her waist, he knew better than to say anything. Ginny needed to let off some steam, and he was none to happy with the Prophet either. Harry often wondered what went on in the mind of the man who edited the Prophet. Honestly, it should be called the Profit. The paper seemed to print any story that would earn them a few Galleons.

OoOoOoOoO

The Prophet's report had made an impact on the school though. Everyone was calling for more training sessions, faster brooms, anything that would guarantee a win at Durmstrang. Harry did add more training sessions, but he didn't want to give the team the impression that he was worried. Everyone knew Durmstrang would be tough to beat. Hogwarts wouldn't have the advantage of a home crowd either, only family members were allowed to travel with the team. It worried Harry a little, he had never played a game outside of Hogwarts. He supposed though, that it would be a good experience before playing for the Cannons.

He had spent hours discussing it with Ginny. She was a far better tactician than Harry, so he relied on her to come up with the best game plan. What they spent a lot of time discussing, was the Cannons. Harry had started following Quidditch properly, and now realised the enormity of the challenge they faced. Chudley had finished bottom of the league last season, they finished nearly 2,000 points behind the champions, the Harpies.

Harry was fairly certain they wouldn't be winning the league with the Cannons. He hoped to get them back into the middle of the table. What he was most nervous about though, was living with Ginny. Were they ready? Harry was excited by the prospect of living with Ginny, but he knew it wouldn't come without its challenges.

OoOoOoOoO

Times got worse for the Hogwarts team. Hufflepuff lost badly to Slytherin. That wouldn't have bothered Harry, but in an act of frustration, the Hufflepuff Beater sent a Bludger into the face of the Slytherin Keeper after the game finished. He would be fine, but he wouldn't make the game against Durmstrang. This left the whole team low on morale, the young Keeper was the teams best player. Harry kicked the Hufflepuff beater off the team, and called up a Ravenclaw Beater as a reserve.

Gryffindor's Keeper would now play the match at Durmstrang. Harry hoped he could hold his nerve, he had been improving in training, but he was still second best to the Slytherin Keeper. It was just over a week now until they travelled to Durmstrang, they needed to get their spirits up. So Harry came up with an idea for their next training session.

OoOoOoOoO

The Ravenclaw Chaser had contracted a cold, so Harry ordered her to take the day off and rest, this gave him the perfect numbers for the game he had devised. "Right then," Harry said as he released the Snitch, "I thought we'd take the day off and have some fun."

"But-" Demelza Robins started.

"Shh," Harry cut her off, "everyone in the school is taking the match against Durmstrang too seriously, yes they are a good team, yes we will have to work hard, but nobody is in the right mindset just now. So, we're going to switch positions today!"

"What?" Peakes eyed Harry curiously, gripping tightly onto his bat.

"Were going to switch positions. You and Coote will play Chaser, Ginny and Demelza will be Beaters and I'll try my hand at being a Keeper."

"But that means-"

"Yep," Harry smiled at the Gryffindor Keeper, "you'll be playing Seeker for today, and I suggest you get started, that Snitch is long gone."

OoOoOoOoO

The training session had gone well. The team were in better spirits. Harry had actually performed ok as Keeper, although that could have had something to do with Peakes and Coote playing Chaser. Everyone had a good laugh though, and the Gryffindor Keeper did eventually catch the Snitch. Harry didn't think the day off training would affect the team much, they had been training since they defeated Beauxbatons. They honestly couldn't get more prepared.

There was something troubling Harry though. Visitors to Durmstrang must comply with memory charms, so they can't reveal the schools location. Despite several protests from the team, Professor McGonagall told them they would have to comply with Durmstrang's rules, or forfeit the competition. This hadn't gone down well with Harry and Ginny, they had seen first hand what could happen if a memory charm went wrong. Gilderoy Lockhart was still in St. Mungos and would probably never regain his memory properly.

OoOoOoOoOoO

"Harry?" Ginny asked when they were curled up by the fire that night.

"Whats up?" Harry replied, leaning closer to her.

"You said Snape was the true hero, I know you explained it to me, but I can't picture it. He seemed so evil."

"I know he did, thats how he managed to pull it off." Harry replied, hugging Ginny tightly, "tomorrow I'll ask McGonagall to let me use her office for an hour, then I'll show something that'll remove any doubt."

OoOoOoOoOoO

"Ginny, you have to understand that what I'm about to show you, won't be very nice at all. In fact, it will be incredibly horrible." Harry had taken her to McGonagall's office, he was speaking to her with a tone of warning in his voice.

Ginny nodded. She still wasn't sure where he was going with this, or what could be in McGonagall's office that he wanted to show her. He went over to an ornate cabinet and opened the doors, revealing a strange dark disk, with what looked like cloudy water swirling inside it. Harry brought the disk over to the Headmistress's desk then drew out his wand and placed the tip of it on his temple. He closed his eyes and drew his wand away, a silvery strand of mist floated lazily in the air, and Harry directed it into the cloudy water swirling in the dish.

"Have you ever used a pensieve?" Harry asked. Ginny shook her head. "It lets you relive your own, or someone else's memories. You have to stick your face into the water, I'll warn you, its a little uncomfortable at first. He took her hand and they delved into Harry's memories.

OoOoOoOoO

Ginny screamed and gripped Harry tightly. She was falling. Then suddenly they landed on hard ground. "What-"

"We are at the Shrieking Shack Ginny. These are my memories. Voldemort is about to kill Snape. You don't have to watch." But Ginny did watch, it all seemed so real. Voldemort was standing there ordering his pet snake to kill Snape. Those horrible red eyes, enjoying the moment. The twisted features that haunted Ginny in her sleep. They were right in front of her.

She watched Harry taking memories from Snape as he lay dying. She could feel the sadness that Harry felt, his every emotion hung in the air. They walked now, back to the castle, where Harry let himself into McGonagall's office and tipped the memories into the pensieve. Ginny felt the same falling sensation as they fell into Snape's memories.

Ginny cried watching them. When Snape rushed to Godric's Hollow, to find Lily Potter lying on the floor, having sacrificed herself to save Harry. Snape had held her and cried with such emotion, it brought Ginny to a new wave of tears. Snape had gone to Dumbledore for help, and agreed to do everything in his power to protect Harry, to risk his life every day in order to ensure Harry's safety. She watched Dumbledore planning his own death with Snape, planning Harry's. Dumbledore had raised Harry to be killed by Lord Voldemort. Ginny held Harry tightly as the memory played on, she watched Snape cast a patronus. A doe. The same as Harry's mother. She heard Dumbledore gasp, "Lily? After all these years?"

Professor Snape replied in a tone that brought Ginny to her knees. "Always."

Harry's memory took them out of the office, to Ron and Hermione. He explained what he had to do, and hugged his friends one last time. Harry told Neville to kill the snake, and slipped on his invisibility cloak. Then she saw herself, comforting another student. Harry had stopped to take a last look at her, why hadn't he spoken to her then? Right before he marched off to his death. But Ginny knew the answer, she could feel it. If Harry had spoken to her, he wouldn't have been able to go.

Ginny didn't want to go on. She knew what was coming next. Harry reached the Forbidden Forest. Ginny was puzzled, Harry stopped and took out a Snitch, and a message appeared on its surface. _I open at the close. _Harry whispered to the Snitch, "I am ready to die." The Snitch opened to reveal a small stone, which Harry turned in his hands. Ginny broke down again, having only recovered from her last bout of tears. Harry's family were standing in front of him. His parents, Sirius and Remus. They offered him words of comfort, and Harry walked to the clearing, and faced Lord Voldemort. Hagrid yelled out to Harry, only to be silenced by a Death Eater as Voldemort gave Harry a wicked smile.

Harry stood straight backed and stared Voldemort in the face. He never raised his wand, he stood and waited for the Killing Curse. Ginny watched Harry's entire life flash before his eyes as Voldemort raised his wand. Time seemed to slow down. Ginny watched as Harry's life played out in front of her. She was horrified as she saw the way the Dursley's had treated him, and laughed when Hagrid burst down the door of the shack and gave Dudley a pigs tail. She saw Harry meet her brother on the train, the first time he entered the castle, and asked not to be sorted into Slytherin. Ginny saw him riding a broomstick for the first time, saw him keep Quirrel from the Philosophers Stone, saw him save her in the Chamber of Secrets.

She watched the TriWizard tournament, feeling his surge of emotion as he beat the dragon, and his horror as Cedric was killed. She saw him suffering through fifth year as Voldemort invaded his mind, and felt the same overwhelming grief as Harry did when Sirius was killed. She watched his sixth year play out, she could see him stealing glances at her when nobody was looking. She had noticed those glances, but she had played them off, thinking she was imagining them. But she wasn't, she could feel Harry's emotions, his conflicting feelings about her being Ron's sister, his growing unnatural hatred towards Dean Thomas.

She watched their first kiss from Harry's point of view. She wouldn't forget the moment as long as she lived, but what she had felt seemed nothing compared to Harry. She could feel his overwhelming surge of happiness, he had actually been shaking, she hadn't even noticed at the time. But it was then when Harry potter had lived the single best moment of his life. Then it was all ruined by Dumbledore's death. He had went after Snape, and discovered that he was the Half-Blood Prince.

She watched all of his memories of being on the run. But what stuck out most, was one little thing. He had watched her dot on the Marauders Map every night, checking that she was safe, hoping she could feel him watching over her. Everything led back to the Forbidden Forest, she saw the green light of the Killing Curse, this was it. Except it wasn't it, Harry had one more thought before he died. He thought of Ginny.

OoOoOoOoOoO

Ginny collapsed into Harry's arms when he pulled her from the pensieve. "You- you had to go through all that?" Ginny cried into his chest. She needed to pull herself together, Harry should be the one crying on the floor not her.

"Shhh, its over now," Harry rubbed her back and spoke in a soothing tone, "I would do it all over again just to be where we are now. About to play for the Chudley Cannons."

Ginny laughed, but she turned very serious again, "you thought of me, before-," she held back another sob, "before the end." Harry nodded.

"Ginny I lo-" she cut him off by putting a finger to his lips.

"I know."


	13. Chapter 13 Durmstrang

Heyy! Here it is! The match against Durmstrang! I hope you enjoy it, read and review!

A/N: did anyone learn 'Fly Eagles fly'? If you did, write the lyrics in a review!

Iron Man.

The team had made it to Durmstrang. Harry had even undergone the memory charm, and it had worked out fine. It hadn't gone with out complaint, none of the team wanted to have their memory altered. In the end, Ginny was the bravest and went first, the rest of the team pointed their wands at the wizard performing the charm, ready to strike if he got it wrong, accidental or not. The wizard was an old man, he didn't seem phased by all the wands pointing at him, which led Harry to believe that this sort of thing had happened before.

With the memory charms performed, they were allowed to enter Durmstrang. It wasn't a very nice place, that was the first thought that entered Harry's head. The walls were bare, not a tapestry or portrait in sight. Everything seemed dark, the torches on the walls didn't light up the hallways, they cast shadows instead. They were shown to a guest wing and told to make themselves comfortable. Easier said than done, the furniture was hard and stiff and uncomfortable. Harry sat in his bed, gazing at a thunderstorm outside of the window.

Accepting the fact that sleep would not be coming to him, Harry slipped out of bed and wandered out of his room and into the guest lounge. Ginny was slumped in a sofa, gazing into the fire. "Couldn't sleep?" He asked her.

"Who can? Look at this place, its so miserable."

"I've been thinking, maybe its just to put us off."

"To put us off?" Ginny asked.

"Yes. If we're uncomfortable, and can't sleep, they'll be hoping we lose the match."

"The cheats!" Ginny roared, realising what he meant. "They can't do this! We need to complain to McGonagall, or-"

"There's nothing we can do, if I'm wrong, then Durmstrang will be offended and we'll have embarrassed Hogwarts in the process. We'll just need to win."

"I can't sleep Harry, how do you expect me to play well?"

"Come here," Harry sat on the opposite end of the couch and held out his arms, "you'll be doing more work than me, so I'll try and help you get to sleep." Ginny shuffled over and curled up on top of him.

"You know people will talk about this Harry." She put it bluntly.

"I know, but I stopped listening to 'people' a long time ago." Ginny slept soundly after that.

OoOoOoOoO

Harry felt nervous as he stepped out onto the pitch at Durmstrang. The air was thick with fog, and Harry could feel drizzle slowly soaking his uniform. Luckily, Ginny knew the spell Hermione had once used to stop his glasses clouding up, so he would be able to see as well as anyone else. Not that there was much to see in the dense fog bearing down on the arena.

Harry stepped up and shook hands with the Durmstrang Captain, a chunky Beater who tried his utmost to crush Harry's hand into dust. The players took to the air and Harry watched the Snitch being released, keeping his eye on it. If he lost track of it now, it could be hours before the fog lifted, and he doubted he would be able to spot it when he couldn't even see the other end of the pitch.

Harry shot off on his Firebolt the second the Quaffle was released, but it wasn't any use. The Snitch was long gone. He looked down and saw a glimpse of red hair through the fog. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Harry wondered if she would get upset if he made a joke about her being the Human Torch. Then he concluded that Ginny had probably never read a Marvel comic in her life. His mind then wandered back to his past, back to stealing Dudley's old copies of 'The Fantastic Four' just to pass the time at Number 4. In part, he owed his sanity to Stan Lee.

OoOoOoOoOoO

The teams were allowed a break after 5 hours of play, a very rare occurrence in a Quidditch match. Harry looked at his team, they were exhausted. Demelza was missing two teeth, the Keeper had collapsed, and Ginny was covered in mud after a freak Bludger had sent her crashing into the ground. Coote was the only one not bothered, he was having the time of his life. He taken out all of Durmstrang's Chasers, which would usually please Harry, but the game had been going on for so long that they were all able to come back on once they had recovered. The score was tied at 500 points apiece. The dense fog still hadn't lifted.

"This game needs to be finished." Harry announced, nobody seemed to be listening. They were all slumped in various positions around the locker room. "If anyone happens to spot the Snitch-"

"Nobody's seem the Snitch for five hours Harry," Ginny groaned from the floor, "we've all had a look at some point."

"Thats just great." Harry groaned.

"Why don't you try flying above the fog?" Coote piped up. "Nobody's tried there."

"Its a big risk though," it was Demelza, "if Harry flies up and the Snitch is in the stadium, we lose."

"Fine." Harry had sat contemplating, "I'll wait and see what the Durmstrang Seeker does, if he stays down in the arena, so will I. If times get desperate, I'll fly up."

OoOoOoOoO

After another four hours of boring play, things started to get desperate. Durmstrang were a few points ahead, then their Captain hit a Bludger which smashed the Gryffindor Keeper in the face. He hit the ground and didn't get back up. A medical crew removed him from the pitch. Durmstrang started building on their lead. "Potter," Harry turned to see Coote speaking to him. "Times are getting desperate."

Harry nodded. "Defend the hoops." Coote set off towards the hoops, and Harry pointed his broom skyward. It took at least five minutes to break through the fog, once he did, Harry saw it. The Snitch hovered above the cloud, it probably hadn't moved the whole game. Harry glided slowly towards it. It shot upwards with incredible speed.

Harry could feel his ears popping as he soared into the sky. He had never seen a Snitch move so fast. He looked down and saw the Durmstrang Seeker break through the cloud. Harry was gaining slowly on the Snitch, but the Durmstrang Seeker was gaining fast on Harry. Harry was a metre from the tiny golden ball, but he was struggling. His broom was slowing, and becoming unresponsive. The air was getting thinner too, and Harry was finding it hard to breathe. He was inches from grabbing the Snitch, but he could hear the opposing Seeker coming up behind him.

Harry could actually feel the Durmstrang Seeker tugging the end of his broom. Harry pushed harder, but his broom was almost at a stop. Then he made possibly the stupidest decision of his life. He kicked off of the foot-pegs of his broom and leapt high into the air. Harry grabbed the Snitch, but he didn't have time for celebrating. The Durmstrang Seeker didn't try to catch him, so Harry tried summoning his broom, but the other Seeker held on to it and grinned as Harry plummeted towards the ground.

Harry used Arresto Momentum it slowed him down, but he was still falling fast. He cast it again and again, but he still wasn't stopping. Harry was spinning through the air, he was enveloped in the fog now. Nobody would see him falling, nobody would stop him before he hit the ground. Then something collided with Harry in mid-air, the Ravenclaw Chaser held on to him as long as she could but eventually she had to let him go. Harry had been slowed down considerably though, and Coote repeated the Ravenclaw Chaser's feat, but rather than drop him, passed him over to Peakes. Then with extremely precise coordination, and incredible flying, Peakes deposited Harry safely onto the back of Ginny's broom.

OoOoOoOoO

Ginny threw herself into Harry's arms as soon as they touched down. "Harry! I thought you were- I thought I wouldn't be able to catch you!" Harry said nothing, he was in too much shock. Instead he gathered Ginny up in his arms and carried her off the pitch, hugging her closely and trying to hold back tears. The Hogwarts team hugged each other in the locker room, and Harry managed to mumble out a thanks.

He stood in the shower wondering how he could have been so stupid. What possessed him to jump off his broom just to catch a Snitch? It wasn't even his broom. Durmstrang refused to compete against players on a Firebolt, much to Harry and Ginny's protests, McGonagall had allowed this rule too. Now Harry owed the Cannons a Nimbus. The Durmstrang Seeker had dropped it before flying down. People were speculating that Harry had caught the Snitch at 12,000 feet. It seemed a bit of an exaggeration, but apparently they had a way to record the height and although it hadn't yet been revealed, it was rumoured to be well above 10,000 feet. Harry didn't really care. He wouldn't be doing that height again.

OoOoOoOoO

"Harry!" Dozens of cameras flashed as he exited the locker room, "a few words please?"

"Do you have any idea how high you fell from?"

"What strategy will you be employing against Beauxbatons?" Harry hadn't even bothered to check the score, but according to this reporter, Hogwarts had won the match.

Another reporter forced her way to the front, and got herself right in Harry's face. "Harry, a few words for the Prophet please?" Her eyes pleaded with him,she was a young Quidditch correspondent.

"Sure," Harry replied, "the Prophet should be shut down, everyone read the Quibbler!" The young woman shook her head in dismay, a Quick Quotes Quill had written it down.

More reporters tried to crowd him as he made his way to the door. "But Harry! We want to talk about the match!"

"The match was dreadful." Harry was giving them nothing. "It lasted far too long and my team got beaten up a fair bit. Now if you'll excuse me, my Keeper is hurt pretty bad." Harry pushed passed the reporters and stormed towards Durmstrang. He needed to make sure the rest of his team were ok, and find out what happened to the Gryffindor Keeper.


	14. Chapter 14 Dance Lessons from Demelza

Heyy guys! Here is my latest chapter! I hope you like it! Read and review! Also, I'm still waiting on someone who knows the lyrics to 'Fly Eagles fly.'

Iron Man.

The Gryffindor Keeper was hurt bad. Really bad. He'd been hit in the face by a Bludger at very close range. He was in the hospital wing, and would be there for the month, probably longer. Even with magic, he would take a long time to heal. The team visited him at various times through the week, most of the time he was sleeping. It hit home just how dangerous a sport Quidditch actually was.

Worse still, as Captain of Hogwarts, Harry was being forced to give a press conference. To address the state of his team and report on any injuries, and to talk about the final game against Beauxbatons. Harry had prepared a statement, explaining the Gryffindor Keepers condition.

OoOoOoOoO

There was a purpose built room in the Quidditch stadium, where Harry gave his press conference. Harry was surprised at the amount of reporters that turned up. Several Quidditch magazines wanted to ask questions, most notably Which Broomstick? For whatever strange reason, Witch Weekly had turned up and to Harry's disgust, the Prophet had turned up with an army of reporters. "All right," Harry announced, "lets get this over with." He had been dreading this all day. He hated the press.

"Harry," a blonde reporter from the Prophet got in first, "you've beaten Durmstrang, but you took quite a lot of damage in the process. Can we expect a few changes in the Hogwarts line-up?" Harry prepared his little speech.

"Most definitely," he began, "unfortunately one of our Keepers took a Bludger to the face at close range. He is currently in the Hospital Wing at school, and definitely wont be starting. The school's healer, Madame Pomfrey, has said he will make a full recovery, but it will take a bit of time. We hope he can play for Gryffindor again after Christmas break."

"So you won't be replacing him on the house team?"

"Not unless we have to," Harry gritted his teeth, "he is a talented player, and we hope he makes a speedy recovery."

"So your facing Beauxbatons," Which Broomstick? Were asking the questions now, "will you be back on your Firebolt?"

"Yes." Harry replied. The reporter seemed to expect more but Harry wasn't giving any, so Witch Weekly got their word in.

"So Harry, after saving the Wizarding World, and now soon to be a professional Quidditch player, the ladies must be throwing themselves at you?"

"No, and I wouldn't be interested anyway." Harry realised how stupid he had been the second the words left his mouth.

"Ooh, does this mean the famous Harry Potter has already been snatched up?"

"Thats none of your business. Anymore questions relating to Quidditch?"

"Oh yes!" Another reporter from the Prophet. "It was revealed recently that you have signed a deal to play for the Chudley Cannons-"

"Any questions regarding the Cedric Diggory Quidditch Cup?" Harry cut her off. Nobody had one, they had all came to try and pry into Harry's personal life. As usual. Harry got up and left the room. He could hear his name being called and was blinded by several camera flashes, but he ignored them all. He was going to find Ginny.

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

Ginny could tell from Harry's face that the press conference had gone just as he had expected. She had already prepared for the moment he walked in. Their favourite spot by the fire was vacant, courtesy of a clinic in how to perform the Bat-Bogey Hex. She had a mug of hot chocolate at the ready, and a letter from the Cannons that was sure to cheer Harry up. Harry sat and clasped his mug of hot chocolate while Ginny explained the contents of the letter. "Here, you can read it if you want, but it will probably be the same as mine," Ginny said, handing him the envelope, "in short, Gregory asked if we would like to visit our house during Christmas break."

"Well, thats great!" Harry seemed to have cheered up a bit at this news, "though I thought we planned to stay here for Christmas, didn't your mum write saying your parents are visiting Charlie?"

"She did," Ginny replied with a smile, "but while you were at the press conference, I went and spoke to McGonagall. She says we can leave the school for the day, two or three if we want."

"Two or three days?" Harry replied in shock, "but-"

"We might as well Harry," Ginny cut him off, "we'll have to get used to living together, this will be a good opportunity to test the water." Harry nodded. He realised just how fast his life was progressing. Soon he and Ginny would be living in their own house. Would they be sleeping in the same room?

"Ginny," Harry began, the question was going to be so embarrassing, "will we be, you know,-"

"Sleeping in the same room?" She cut him off with a smirk. "Thats usually what happens when your girlfriend moves in with you Harry." He turned bright red, and took a sudden interest in the bottom of his mug. Harry could feel Ginny laughing at his discomfort, and rewarded her with a gentle dig in the ribs. She grabbed his mug, set it down, then dived on top of him for one of their twenty-minute tickle fights.

OoOoOoOoOoO

Professor McGonagall made an announcement at dinner that evening that sent shockwaves throughout the female population of the castle, and drew groans and curses from the boys. "Following the traditions of the TriWizard Cup, Hogwarts will be holding the Yule Ball on Christmas day. All students fourth year and above are allowed to attend, any students below fourth year may attend if asked by an older student. Beauxbatons and Durmstrang students will, of course, be welcomed to the ball. Also, the venue for the final match of the Cedric Diggory Quidditch Cup will be chosen on the night of the ball."

This drew cheers from the crowd. Harry thought the final match would have been played at Beauxbatons, but apparently not. He turned to face Ginny, who just smirked at him. Nobody needed to say it, they would be attending the ball together. Or so they thought.

OoOoOoOoOoO

Harry and Ginny left the Great Hall when it was almost empty. They had spent a lot of time talking about the ball, and their house. They were on their way to the Common Room when they heard raised voices ahead of them. They rounded the corner ahead of them, to find the Slytherin Keeper comforting a third year girl from Hufflepuff.

"Everything ok?" Harry asked.

"We aren't allowed to go the ball," the Slytherin Keeper replied dully, "its ridiculous! I'm on the team, I should be allowed in, and allowed to take whoever I want. McGonagall won't let us though, because we aren't in fourth year."

Harry looked at the pair of them, slumped on a bench, looking as miserable as someone who was about to be sent to Azkaban. Then, he thought up a plan that would allow them to attend. It wasn't against the rules, so nobody could complain, although it would seem strange. He whispered into Ginny's ear and she gave him a wide smile, nodded and bent down to talk to the Slytherin Keeper. "How would you like to come to the ball with me?"

"What?" The Slytherin Keeper looked confused, his girlfriend looked furious. So Harry jumped in before a fight ensued.

"How about coming to the ball with me?" Harry asked the Hufflepuff.

"But-" the Hufflepuff started, Ginny cut her off.

"Younger students can attend the ball if anyone fourth year or above asks them to," the penny seemed to drop, "if you come with us, you'll be allowed in. Its not against the rules so nobody can complain. We'll all sit together at dinner, do a few dances and then you can spend the rest of the evening together."

"Thank you so much!" The Slytherin Keeper beamed at them. Harry was squashed by a bear hug from the Hufflepuff girl. Harry decided that, the Yule Ball would be much better this time around.

OoOoOoOoOoO

As well as taking Transfiguration, Professor McGonagall had remained head of Gryffindor house. Harry wondered how she managed it, she was the Headmistress after all. As the Head of House, she would be giving dance lessons to the students attending the Yule Ball. This time, Harry paid more attention. He wasn't going to give Ginny a disappointing evening because he couldn't dance.

Harry went a step further though. Whilst Ginny was in Transfiguration, Harry had a free period. As did Demelza, who Harry had enlisted to teach him to dance. As it turned out, Demelza was a brilliant dancer. After many days stumbling awkwardly around the Common Room and stepping on Demelza's toes, Harry was getting pretty good at dancing. Hopefully he would give Ginny an evening to remember.


	15. Chapter 15 Vinehill Cottage

Heyy! Here is the next chapter! Sorry for the wait. I hope you enjoy it, read and review! Also, the person who tells me the lyrics to 'Fly Eagles fly' in a review; will get PM'd the next chapter before it is released.

Iron Man.

A few weeks passed, and November would soon be coming to and end. Harry could feel the buzz of excitement around the castle, especially when the 'Lovely Ladies of Beauxbatons' started arriving. Watching the fourth years oggle at them made Harry wonder if he and Ron had looked that stupid a few years ago. Yes, the Beauxbatons girls were very pretty, but there was no need to stare at them like that.

Harry even spoke to a few of them, mostly those on the Quidditch team. Contrary to popular belief, the girls from Beauxbatons were ordinary human beings. Still, they were uncommonly pretty. Most of the Beauxbatons Quidditch team were more eager for the Quidditch match rather than the Yule Ball. Harry couldn't blame them, he felt more comfortable on a broom than on the dance floor.

OoOoOoOoOoO

Harry had also tried getting to know the Hufflepuff girl in third year. He decided it was probably a good idea, he would be taking her to the ball after all. She enjoyed Quidditch too, which made her easier to talk to, unfortunately she had been ill during tryouts and hadn't managed to get a spot on the team. She was actually quite nice, and Harry imagined that the four of them would have a good time.

Harry and Ginny often took to flying at night. Ginny had introduced him to the idea, she had learned to fly by breaking into the family broom shed at night, and taking each of her brothers brooms out in turn. While it was a little chilly, Harry enjoyed seeing the castle lit up at night. Ginny told him there was rumours that the final match would be played at night. Harry doubted it at first, but the stadium had recently been equipped with enormous floodlights. According to one of the Beauxbatons players, their stadium had been having work done on it since they left.

OoOoOoOoOoO

The only people not having a good time were the students from Durmstrang. They stalked the grounds, with faces like thunder. The Quidditch Captain even threw Harry to the ground in the middle of the courtyard. It didn't end well for the Durmstrang Beater, before Harry had even drawn his wand, Ginny had jumped in and administered a powerful Bat-Bogey Hex. The Durmstrang student was flailing around for nearly 10 minutes before his Headmaster got rid of the bats.

Harry thought they would be in trouble, but the Durmstrang Headmaster complimented Ginny on the power of her hex. Then he bellowed at the Beater for losing a duel to a girl, and dragged him out of the courtyard. "Wow." Harry remarked, picking himself up off the ground. Ginny just nodded.

OoOoOoOoO

The events of that afternoon didn't bother Harry that much. He was a mess from the moment he got up out of bed. Today was the day he and Ginny would be visiting their house. He had packed for three days, and sent an owl to Gringotts Bank, telling them he would be in to exchange a few Galleons into Pound notes. They would need muggle money for food Harry presumed. Though he had never visited Chudley, so it could turn out to be a wizard village. He had asked Ginny, but she didn't know. Ron was the one to ask about Chudley.

Harry was sat on his bed gazing at the ceiling. Ten minutes and he would be heading downstairs to meet Ginny. His heart was thumping. He didn't even know why he was nervous. He spent almost all of his time with Ginny anyway. Why should sharing a house with her be any different? In truth, it wasn't sharing a house that scared him. It was sharing a room.

OoOoOoOoOoO

Harry and Ginny made it to their meeting place with Gregory Rookwood. A cafe in Chudley. They had used the Floo Network to get out of the castle, a quick stop in Diagon Alley, and then into a large Wizarding village. So Harry would not be needing the pound notes in his wallet. Gregory greeted them and bought them a coffee, then he showed them around the village a little. They now knew where to shop, grab a bite to eat, there was a small local branch of Gringotts, and Chudley had a wonderful park, with lush grass, a lake in the middle and a long path around the outside.

Gregory led them to the outskirts of the village, up a winding road to Vinehill Cottage. Harry was pleased with what he saw. Vinehill Cottage was a small brick building, with vines creeping up the right hand side. It was a one and half storey cottage, Harry could almost picture the two bedrooms upstairs. There were large gardens at the front, either side of a good sized driveway. Plenty of shrubs and flowers, none of which Harry could name, lined the borders, and a row of tall hedges granted them privacy, as did the large gate at the end of the road.

"I had the place fully refurbished, I wanted to make sure you would be comfortable here." Gregory smiled at them.

"It looks gorgeous!" Ginny was ecstatic. Harry nodded his agreement. The house was great.

"Can we take a look inside?" Harry asked.

"Sure, it is your house after all." Gregory reached into his pocket and fished out a pair of keys. "I had brand new locks put in, you'll have magical protections put in place but there's no harm in using a muggle lock on your front door." With that, Gregory opened the door and welcomed the pair into their new home.

OoOoOoOoOoO

Ginny was overjoyed at their new home. Gregory had left them to explore it themselves, and they did just that. Their living room was open-planned, and led into an impressive kitchen. Everything in the house brand new. The Cannons really had spared no expense. They had comfortable leather sofas from which to watch a device Harry called a 'plasma screen TV', whatever that was. Harry seemed excited about it. The kitchen was small, but everything in it was top of the range. Upstairs there were two bedrooms. One was a small guest bedroom, the other was a large master bedroom with an en-suite.

The bathroom upstairs had a bath big enough for five people. Ginny was most excited however, when she looked out of an upstairs window. "Harry, come here quick!"

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

Harry heard Ginny calling him and rushed to her side. She pointed out of the window, into their garden. The back garden of Vinehill cottage was best described as an outdoor paradise. For one thing, it was absolutely massive. The house had a sprawling lawn, enclosed by large trees on each side. Off to the left was a decent sized pool, complete with jacuzzi. Harry hoped it was heated, England didn't get the best weather. At the back- "Harry is that..?" Ginny cut off his train of thought.

"Only one way to find out." He replied. They dashed downstairs, and out of the backdoor. Then they sprinted to the bottom of the garden.


	16. Chapter 16 The Tinderblast II

Heyy! Here is the next chapter! I hope you like it! Read and review! Congrats to Daneille (Kiwiquil) who posted the lyrics to 'Fly Eagles fly.'

Iron Man.

Their own training ground. Harry and Ginny had their own training ground in their garden. Ginny stared in awe. They had a half-pitch, three hoops and enough room to fly around chasing a Snitch. They also had a large shed, which Ginny threw open in anticipation. It was more than just a broom shed. Hung up on the wall were two bright orange uniforms reading, 'Weasley 6' and 'Potter 7'. "They have our uniforms made up already, they're a brand new design too! The Cannons are already preparing for next season! Harry?" He wasn't listening. He was at the opposite end of the shed, looking at an unusual looking pair of broomsticks.

"Have a read at this." Harry said handing a note to her. Ginny read.

**_Dear Mr. Potter and Ms. Weasley,_**

**_In front of you are two prototype models of the Firebolt II. Mr. Rookwood has informed us that you will be spending a few days in Chudley before Christmas, so we have sent two prototype brooms and ask that you test them and give us feedback, in order to make sure the brooms will be an improvement on the current model. As they are only prototypes, the brooms may have some bugs which we intend to fix before production goes ahead. Mr. Rookwood has supplied safety equipment, so you don't get hurt while flying, and a sum of 5,000 Galleons has been placed into your bank accounts as payment for conducting tests on the Firebolt II._**

**_The specifications for the Firebolt II are as follows:_**

**_A slimline polished Mahogany handle. Replacing the wider Ebony handle on the Firebolt I._**

**_Twigs of Birch or Hazel depending on preference. (We have sent one of each.)_**

**_Unbreakable Braking Charm. As well as a Non-Slip Charm exclusive to the Firebolt II which meets I.Q.A regulations._**

**_Faster acceleration. The Firebolt II is designed to do 0-150mph in 7.3 seconds, this will make the Firebolt II the fastest accelerating broomstick in the world once proven._**

**_More grip. The Goblin-made ironwork on the Firebolt II is both lighter, and provides better grip and turning speed than the previous model._**

**_When you have finished testing, please send an owl to us with your thoughts on the Firebolt II and give any suggestions you have.  
Randolph Spudmore,  
Firebolt._**

OoOoOoOoOoO

The Firebolt II was dreadful. Harry and Ginny had changed into their uniforms and put on the extra padding. It was a good thing they had safety equipment to use. About five minutes into their test Harry's Firebolt II lost no less than 22 twigs. Ginny dropped a foot-peg, and despite the 'Non-Slip Charm' the pair found themselves sliding around on the broomsticks. The shaft was far too narrow to sit comfortably, and Harry landed quickly when he felt the broom start to lose power. He called Ginny to the ground too, fearing her safety. Firebolt wouldn't like the letter Harry was about to send them.

OoOoOoOoOoO

**_Dear Mr. Spudmore,_**

**_Put simply, the Firebolt II models that Ginny and I tested are not only awful, but unsafe. I'm sorry to be so harsh, but this broom is to be released to the public, so you need to know. Five minutes into our flight, my broom lost exactly twenty-two twigs from the back. Ginny's left foot-peg fell off and she spiralled out of control, and my broom then lost power, forcing me to land. The current Firebolt is a much better model, you will need to make some serious changes to the Firebolt II before I think its safe for the public to use. I understand due to our agreement, I am to promote the Firebolt brand. However I cannot honour that agreement if your brooms are too dangerous for people to use._**

**_The reliability issues on the Firebolt II need to be fixed ASAP. Also, we found that the 'Non-Slip Charm' is not very effective, as we were sliding around on the brooms a fair bit. We recommend that you widen the shaft of the broom, we found it far too narrow, and it made riding the Firebolt II very uncomfortable. The foot-pegs need to be bolted on securely, as do the twigs.  
I sincerely hope you fix these issues,  
Harry Potter._**

Randolph Spudmore had read the letter 11 times. What had gone so wrong when developing his new broom? Not once during testing in the factory, or the wind tunnels, had a part fallen off. Was the Firebolt II really as bad as Harry had made out in his letter? Harry Potter did not seem the type to make a joke like that. It had to be, and Randolph would have to fix it.

Perhaps he would speak to the design team at the Comet Trading Company. Two years before the war Randolph had bought the company who made the famous Comet broomsticks. They were nowhere near as fast as the Firebolt, but had a reputation for being strong, reliable brooms. Favoured by many Quidditch teams. Buying Comet had cost Randolph big money, but the risk was well worth it. Firebolt had made a large profit after sales of the Comet 290 went through the roof.

With the Nimbus Racing Broom Company rumoured to be unveiling a new model for 1999 in the weeks before Christmas, Firebolt would have to turn their new broom into a reliable racer fast. If they didn't, Nimbus would beat them in pre-order sales. Christmas was the perfect time to unveil next years brooms, people would pre-order brooms as presents, so that flyers would have a new broom for next season. Randolph needed something to take attention away from the Firebolt II. Thats why he bought his fathers old company, Ellersby and Spudmore, and began drawing up plans for the 'Tinderblast II.'

OoOoOoOoOoO

**The New Broomsticks For 1999!**

**_Its that time of the year again, right before Chistmas, where broomstick manufacturers across the globe reveal their new models! This year is extra exciting, with both the Nimbus Racing Broom Company and Firebolt expected to unveil new models in the coming weeks. If the rumours are true, Nimbus will soon be announcing the 2500, but nobody knows what to expect from Firebolt. Many fans loyal to both brands are having quite the argument, can Nimbus steal Firebolt's crown? Or will Firebolt continue to dominate the racing broom market?_**

**_Perhaps not quite as exciting, but definitely noteworthy, is the coming release of the Comet 330. The Comet Trading Company have been one of the most successful broom manufacturers of the last century, and now they are owned by Firebolt, after Randolph Spudmore purchased the brand last year. While Comet's brooms may not have the speed of the Firebolt, or the beauty of the Nimbus models, their range of broomsticks have certainly proved popular. Last year the Comet 290 was one of the bestselling broomsticks on the market, so loyal fans of the brand will be excited for the release of the 330._**

**_On the other side of the coin, Comet's biggest rival, Cleansweep, are expected to reveal the Cleansweep Twelve next week. The Comet/Cleansweep rivalry is legendary, and will surely continue with the new models. Neither company is top of the market anymore, with Nimbus and Firebolt fighting it out for the top spot, but the two companies try just as fiercely to outdo the other. Quidditch and Broom Racing fans will have to wait and see what the newest models bring, but this new wave of coming brooms could be one of the most exciting yet._**

Harry sat reading the article at lunch with Ginny. The first night in Vinehill Cottage had been a bit awkward. Harry had never shared a bed with Ginny before, and the experience was strange. He didn't know what to say, whether to hug her or keep his distance. Ginny seemed a little more relaxed, and snuggled up to him before falling asleep on his chest. Now they were sitting at their rather large table reading the Prophet. "They're making a bit of a fuss over new brooms are they not?" Harry asked.

"Oh Harry, you still have lots to learn about the Wizarding World." She replied with a smirk. "Every time a new broom is released by one of the big companies everyone gets over excited. This year is worse, because Firebolt, Nimbus, Comet and Cleansweep are all bringing out new brooms. This is all anyone is going to be talking about, it will cause fan wars too."

"Fan wars?"

"Mhmm," Ginny replied matter-of-factly, "each of those companies has its own legion of devoted fans, who buy every new model, and then argue with fans of the opposing companies about which one is better. I've always liked Cleansweep, but they don't come close to Firebolt."

"At least they didn't," Harry replied, "but if Firebolt don't fix the II..."

"I hope they do, we'll be riding those brooms next year." She was right. If Firebolt didn't fix their new broom, the Cannons would get worse instead of better. Quidditch is impossible to play if you are falling out of the sky.

OoOoOoOoOoO

Randolph Spudmore sat with his head in his hands, frustrated. The Goblins who made metal parts for the Firebolt had gone on strike yet again. Finances, working conditions, too long hours. All of their usual reasons. But then Randolph had put his foot in it, and told the Goblins that the Firebolt II was a piece of junk that fell apart in the air. Now the Goblins had walked out entirely. Wizards would be able to make the parts needed for the broom, but Goblins were much better at it. Having Wizards manufacture the entire broom could make it less reliable than it already was.

What Randolph would have to rely on more than ever, was the Comet Trading Company. The Comet 330 would have to sell in big numbers, or Firebolt could be finished. He needed to fix the Firebolt II. There was also of course, his side project. The Tinderblast II. Design for this particular broom was going well. Randolph turned and looked with pride at the broomstick on his design board. This was the broom that would make headlines. Not because it was the best broom, or the fastest, or the most beautiful, but because it would be the revival of a legend.


	17. Chapter 17 The Nimbus 2500

Heyy! Here is my latest chapter! Its a little different, as its an article from a Quidditch magazine! Hope you like it, read and review!

Iron Man.

**Which Broomstick? Nimbus 2500!**

Its official! The Nimbus Racing Broom Company have unveiled the Nimbus 2500! It gets better, (for us anyway) Nimbus have given us a few of their new models and allowed us to give an exclusive review! So sit comfortably, grab a Butterbeer, and get ready to read all about the newest addition to the Nimbus family of fine brooms!

The looks:

One of the first things we do at _Which Broomstick?_ Is assess how aesthetically pleasing the broom is. Well, sorry. The Nimbus 2500 is not a pretty broom. Gone are the sleek, smooth looks of the Nimbus 2001. Nimbus themselves have admitted, 'it isn't a pretty broom, the 2500 was built with the sole purpose of going fast.' It does go fast, very fast. But we'll talk about that later.

The 2500 sports a very strange design, all in the pursuit of losing weight. The Nimbus 2500 is the lightest broom commercially available, or it will be when its available for pre-order next week. What makes it so very light, is the unique cut-away handle. What we mean is; Nimbus have cut a huge rectangular chunk out of the handle. No time wasted trying to make it look pretty, Nimbus cut out a huge part of the handle and then varnished it as is.

The shaft is also very angular. It is almost square at the bottom. It also has a very straight incline to the handle, there is almost no curve to the broom whatsoever. At the other end, the 2500 sports a diamond shaped head, only adding to its outlandish looks. Nimbus say this diamond shaped head, is for aerodynamic purposes. We believe these 'aerodynamic purposes' are deflecting air away from the shaft of the broom. Its square shape would definitely create a lot of air resistance.

Perhaps the only curves on the broom, and definitely the best looking part, are the twigs. The twigs are the only feature carried over from the Nimbus 2001. The 'foot-pegs' or 'stirrups' are extremely long, reaching almost to the end of the twigs if you desire. This is to force riders to lie flatter against the broom, increasing the overall speed. Because the foot-pegs rotate though, we have found this also makes a very stable platform for Beaters to smash Bludgers at opposing teams. All in all, the Nimbus 2500 is not a pretty broom, but the performance far outweighs this concern. Nimbus have also defended their new broom, stating that they expect more companies to come out with 'the chopped-out design.'

Overall Performance:

As Nimbus have states, the 2500 was built for one thing. Speed. Merlin does it go fast. On our small training pitch at_ Which Broomstick?_ We were able to achieve speeds of up to 155mph. Meaning the broom is not only fast, but accelerates to high speeds quickly, over short distances. Hopefully in the future we can get a Nimbus 2500 back and take it to a racecourse, to exploit its full speed and acceleration capabilities.

For Chasers:

The broom is well suited to Chasers, especially brave Chasers who aren't afraid to fly straight down the middle of the pitch towards goal. The flat lying position on the broom will make Chasers move incredibly fast. In addition, the ugly, square shaft actually provides a good resting point for the Quaffle, meaning Chasers can really tuck the Quaffle in and protect it.

For Keepers:

Truth be told this really isn't a broom designed for Keepers. Due to the flat lying position on the broom, Keepers can't reach as far as say, on a Cleansweep Eleven. You can sit/stand straight on the foot-pegs, but this makes it hard to defend all three hoops. This is better suited to Beaters.

For Beaters:

This broom proves to be a rather good one for beating Bludgers all day long. Sitting up straight on the foot-pegs, or even standing on them, makes a very stable platform for Beaters. Sitting or Standing the Beater can get a good view of the pitch, and a good range of movement for swinging their bats around. This would also be ideal for Keepers if the transition from standing still to moving at warp-speed was a bit quicker. As it turns out, tucking in and lying flat to reach high speed is a little time consuming. Perhaps Nimbus could fix this problem in later revisions of the 2500.

For Seekers:

This broom is perfect for Seekers. Its very fast. It accelerates like nothing else. It has great cornering speed and handles well, even in 60ft dives with a loop-the-loop at the end. One of our testers even managed a Snitch grab in 7 seconds! Seekers of next year couldn't wish for a better broom.

For Racers:

The same things apply to Racers. The broom is fast, agile and has a really good riding position for racing. There really isn't much left to say.

Overall Impressions:

Overall, the Nimbus 2500 is a great broom. But really, what else would we expect from Nimbus? It is very fast, very agile and surprisingly sturdy. (Yes we unfortunately crashed a brand new Nimbus 2500. Not a scratch on it though!) Only a couple of negatives; it isn't recommendable for Keepers. Does it really need to be so very, very ugly?

Score:

Looks: 2/10 (only the Fambus Station Wagon looks worse. Coincidentally, that broom is also produced by Nimbus.)

Speed: 10/10

Agility: 10/10

Handling: 10/10

Comfort: 8.5/10 (we don't recommend taking it on long journeys, but a normal Quidditch game is fine.)

Sporting credentials: 10/10 (The Holyhead Harpies, Appleby Arrows and Pride of Portree will all be using Nimbus 2500's next season. As will the Scottish and German national teams.)

"Looks like Nimbus will be the broom of choice next season." Harry said reading the issue of _Which Broomstick? _That Ginny had bought at their local newsagent.

"Especially if Firebolt don't do anything." Ginny nodded her reply.

"Who knows, maybe Cleansweep will put them all to shame." This gained a laugh from Ginny.

"Don't laugh Harry!" Ginny said holding her own giggles in. "I used to love riding Cleansweeps." Harry had heard, and thats why he had already pre-ordered the Cleansweep Twelve. It hadn't even been unveiled, but Harry wrote Cleansweep a letter asking them to put his name down. Ginny might never use it in a game, but it was more of a nostalgic gift Harry thought to himself. Besides, the way the Firebolt II was shaping up, having a spare wouldn't hurt.


	18. Chapter 18 The Cleansweep Twelve

**Heyy guys, finally getting a chapter out to you! Its a little shorter, sorry. Hopefully things will start to pick up again. I've also switched from Microsoft Word to Pages, so bear with me while I adapt to the changes.**

**Iron Man**.

Ginny was slightly sad. She and Harry would be leaving Vinehill Cottage in the evening, and heading back to Hogwarts. There was nothing wrong with Hogwarts, and she would be glad to be back once she got there, but she had enjoyed being with alone with Harry. In their own house.

Ginny was still coming around to the fact that Vinehill Cottage was their house. Their very own house. They were going to be living and training here as soon as school finished, Ginny couldn't wait. The few short days the pair had spent in Vinehill Cottage had been fantastic, aside from the test flight on the Firebolt II. That had been dreadful, and Ginny was skeptical about flying on them for an entire Quidditch season. She wouldn't be flying the II if it could kill her, no matter how much money Firebolt offered.

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

Harry sat gazing out of their bedroom window. His bag packed. He felt quite sad inside, he wouldn't see this place for months. For so long Hogwarts was his home, but Harry was beginning to move on. Without Dumbledore, Hogwarts didn't feel the same. Not having all of his friends there had had an impact on his feelings too. Now he could see glimpses of what his life could have in store for him outside of Hogwarts. Voldemort was gone, Harry was free to pursue his dreams, and he couldn't wait to get started.

Before, Harry didn't care about money. It still wasn't incredibly important to him, but he was hungry for success. He also wanted a good life, a quiet life, but a good life. Not just for him, for Ginny too. He wanted Ginny to pursue all of her dreams too, and he wanted to be able to provide her with everything she would possibly need to do so.

Now he viewed Hogwarts as the place where he had grown up, and matured. Vinehill Cottage was his home, or his house at least. His home was wherever Ginny happened to be. Harry had no doubt in his mind, Ginny was the person he wanted to spend his life with.

OoOoOoOoOoO

"You ok?" Ginny was leaning against the door frame, her hair cascading down past her shoulders like liquid fire. Her brown eyes were wide and glistening, Harry could quite happily get lost in them for hours. She gave him a knowing smirk and then said; "You know it helps when you answer my questions."

"I'm ok," Harry replied, "a little sad, we won't see this place for months. It really is beautiful here."

"We'll be back eventually, and it'll be all ours." Her voice was soft, and comforting.

"I love yo-." She cut him off with a kiss.

"I know."

OoOoOoO

Hogwarts appeared out of the gloom, a beacon of warmth standing tall against the icy winter snow hurling itself at them. It was two days until the Yule Ball, two days until Christmas. In the back of his mind, Harry wondered if the Cleansweep Twelve he had ordered would come in time. There had been no mention of it in the Prophet, and 'Which Broomstick?' wouldn't be printing their next issue until January.

He and Ginny held each other close, and walked the path up to the castle. The weather really was dreadful, Harry hoped it would improve for Christmas Day. He thought back to Vinehill Cottage. Right now he would be sitting by the fire, a hot chocolate in his hand and Ginny's head on his chest. But instead he was trudging through mud, getting soaked by snow. He knew he would be glad to be back inside the castle, but the more steps he took, the further the castle seemed to get from him.

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

Harry was greeted by a nice surprise when he finally made it to his bed in the boys dorm. An unmistakably shaped parcel was lying on his bed, with a large envelope attached.

**_Dear Mr. Potter, _**

**_As you have no doubt realised, the Cleansweep Twelve you ordered is contained inside the package attached to this envelope. We hope you enjoy your new Cleansweep broom, and we recommend reading the care guide contained within this envelope to ensure optimum performance from your new broom. Also included in this envelope is our Broom Customisation Kit, exclusive to those who pre-ordered the broom. You will also find a polishing cloth, a tool for pruning the twigs, and a wrench for making fine adjustments. If you have and problems or questions please do not hesitate to inform customer service. _**

**_Thank you for your purchase,_**

**_Cleansweep. _**

Harry took a look through the contents of the envelope. There was a rather extensive care guide, a polishing cloth, the tools for fine tuning the broom, and the 'Broom Customisation Kit.' The kit consisted of a set of vinyl numbers and streamers that could be blended in with the twigs. They could be changed to whatever colour the owner desired, and admittedly they would make the broom look good.

After the envelope had been emptied, Harry moved to broomstick itself. Carefully he peeled off the packaging, he would wrap it again before he handed it to Ginny, but he needed to make sure it had arrived in one piece. It was a gorgeous broom. When it came to looks, the Nimbus and the Firebolt had nothing on the Cleansweep Twelve. Nimbus had predicted correctly that other manufacturers would use the 'cut-away' design, but Cleansweep had succeeded in making a broom that was light, but still looked amazing. As Harry had requested, the broom was finished in red, further adding to the Cleansweep's jaw-dropping good looks. Ginny was going to love it.


	19. Chapter 19 Christmas Day

**Heyy, here is the latest chapter! I hope you guys like it, so read and review! I have also created a website for the fic, where you can download a five page preview of the final edit, and see some concept artwork, as well as learn a little more about the fic! **

** : / / ironheartedgaming . wix harryandginnyseries It is FanFiction, so you know the drill. Copy & paste, then remove the spaces!**

Ginny Weasley rubbed the sleep from her eyes on Christmas morning, reluctant to get out of bed. Harry would be waiting downstairs, no doubt wide awake. She was halfway through getting dressed before she noticed the mountain of presents at the foot of her bed. Ginny quickly tossed on a shirt, and heaved the pile of presents onto her bed. The first was from Luna, _'The Complete Guide to Gnargles.'_ It might come in handy, if Ginny ever discovered what a Gnargle was.

George had sent her a big box of Weasley products, which she could have a lot of fun with, especially on her last day of school. Her Mum had knitted her a jumper, another one for the collection. This years jumper was a horrendous shade of orange, which Ginny realised matched the colours worn by the Chudley Cannons. Fantastic. Perhaps Ginny could convince the Cannons to change colours, a nice blue would be good.

The next parcel she opened came as a surprise. The Slytherin Keeper had gave her a beautiful bracelet, made of silver and engraved with patterns of waves. He had left a small note on the inside of the box.

**_Ginny, _**

**_Thanks for asking me to the Ball, I hope you like this. _**

**_Merry Christmas,_**

**_Marcus. _**

OoOoOoOoOoO

Ginny strolled downstairs to see Harry waiting for her, a mug of hot chocolate in his hand, a bright orange jumper making him stand out amongst the small crowd. "Not wearing yours?" He asked raising an eyebrow.

"No," she replied, "and you're mad wearing yours."

"Go and put yours on."

"No."

"Oh well, you aren't getting this then." He held out an unmistakably shaped package. Ginny glared at him, and stalked to her room to retrieve the hideous orange jumper.

OoOoOoOoOoO

Harry held back a laugh as Ginny came downstairs and pouted at him, wearing her bright orange Weasley jumper. He handed her the Cleansweep Twelve, she placed it carefully on the sofa behind her and then tore off her jumper. "Spoilsport." Harry teased. She rewarded him by sticking her tongue out at him, and then returning to the neatly wrapped broomstick.

"A Cleansweep Twelve?" Harry was terrified, had he got it wrong? Maybe Ginny didn't like it after all.

"I wanted to get you a nostalgic pre-" He was cut off when Ginny threw her arms around him and sent the pair of them crashing to the floor. She buried her face into his chest for a moment before looking up at him with a wide smile.

"I lov-" This time it was Harry's turn to cut her off with a kiss.

"I know."

OoOoOoOoOoO

Harry and Ginny strolled down to breakfast hand in hand, Harry still wearing his hideous orange jumper. It didn't go unnoticed, Ginny could feel the eyes staring at them as they sat down at the Gryffindor table. She grabbed a few pastries, choosing an unhealthy breakfast, it was Christmas Day after all. What she really wanted to do was go outside in the snow, and fly her new broomstick.

As if sensing her impatience, Harry quickly took a few quick bites of toast, and led her out of the hall. After retrieving the Cleansweep, the pair headed outside and took to the air. It was strange flying on the back of a broom, but the Cleansweep accommodated the pair of them nicely. It was, in Harry's opinion, a brilliant broom. It reminded him of his Nimbus 2000, even though it looked nothing like it. The way it flew was the same though, it was fast and handled with pinpoint accuracy. When they were soaring over the lake, Ginny took them into a steep dive which caused Harry to hold on for dear life, acutely aware of where his hands were placed.

Ginny pulled out of the dive. They skimmed the shimmering surface of the Black Lake, and landed gently on the bank. Harry dismounted the broom and the two of them strolled over to their favourite spot, under a large tree overlooking the water. "Thank you Harry." Ginny sighed, snuggling into his chest.

"As long as you like it." Harry smiled. He loved the broom, he might order himself one. It was certainly beating the Firebolt II in every conceivable way, and was definitely the best looking broom on the market. Nimbus would surely be annoyed. Cleansweep had shaved down their broom in a similar way, shed a lot of weight, and still made a gorgeous broom. Nimbus might be leading the way for racing brooms, but Harry had a sneaking suspicion that more people would buy the Cleansweep.

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

Ginny sat with her head resting on Harry's chest. Her favourite spot in the whole world. She sat and thought about how much her life had changed since she met Harry. "Harry, here is your Christmas present." She handed him a small vial, filled with the silvery swirls of her memories. "Its not as good as a new broomstick, but I hope you'll like it."

Harry took the vial from Ginny's hand and stuck it in his pocket. Ginny rested her back onto her spot on Harry's chest. In the back of her mind, she realised this would be her first Christmas without Fred. It would be her family's first Christmas without Fred, George's first Christmas without Fred.

"You ok Ginny?" Harry wrapped an arm around her and pulled her closer.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking about Fred." She wiped a tear from her cheek, and closed her eyes. The war was over, but some wounds would never heal.

OoOoOoOoOoO

After a long time spent snuggling under the tree, Harry and Ginny headed back to the castle. Preparations were being made for the Yule Ball. The entire school had been excited for days. Hagrid had dragged the enormous Christmas tree into the Great Hall, and Professor Flitwick had undertaken the laborious task of decorating it. The enchanted ceiling reflected the snowy skies outside, casting a white glow around the room.

The Gryffindors had put a lot of effort into their Common Room. A tree stood in the corner so tall that the star on top kissed the ceiling. Red and gold tinsel adorned the mantlepiece, the banisters, the portrait hole and any other available free space. Candy was in plentiful supply, someone had set up a table full of food, that kept replenishing itself. Music played throughout the room, _The Weird Sisters _belted out one of their Christmas hits on the Wizarding Wireless.

Everyone was in various stages of unwrapping or unboxing gifts. Harry was pleased to see that despite the tragedy of the war, nothing could dampen the spirit of Christmas. Everyone was in a happy, celebratory mood. The Yule Ball was a few hours away, and most of the students, especially the girls, were excited for it to begin.

Harry was slightly nervous about the ball. He had been practicing his dancing, with Professor McGonagall, and with Demelza, but he was still worried about giving Ginny a disappointing evening. He also had the Hufflepuff girl to worry about. He would be taking her to the ball after all, so he had to ensure she had a good time too. Then there was the Quidditch draw. It would decide where the final match of the Cedric Diggory Quidditch Cup would be played. There was also a rumour going around that some sort of award ceremony was taking place, but Harry wasn't sure about that.


End file.
